


Our Little Horror Story

by WhiteravenGreywolf



Category: Overwatch (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Supernatural Elements, Cross-Posted on FanFiction.Net, F/F, Fluff, Horror, Roommates, halloween fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-17
Updated: 2018-03-01
Packaged: 2019-03-20 09:29:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 13
Words: 52,533
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13714830
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WhiteravenGreywolf/pseuds/WhiteravenGreywolf
Summary: When Lena, Angela, and Fareeha decided to move in together, they never expected Sombra, Fareeha's Best Friend's Little Sister, to move in with them, in the garage no less. Other things none of them had expected for this year include witches, curses, vampires, dragons, and ghosts, among other things.





	1. Who Are You Going to Call?

**Author's Note:**

> Cross-Posted from Fanfiction.net  
> Hello everyone! I know this story seems more appropriate for Halloween and it was posted in October on Fanfiction.net but since I'm reposting everything and I don't really want to wait, here it is! I hope you'll enjoy it nonetheless. I will be posting a new chapter every day.

**Chapter 1**

Who Are You Going to Call?

 

The house had been silent for the better part of the night. Moving in had been quite energy consuming, leaving its new tenants exhausted the previous night. They had almost all gone to sleep early, and while any normal person would have slept as late as possible, Lena was already stirring, close to consciousness. She'd had the poor idea of not placing the curtains above her bedroom window, preferring to do it later, and now the early sun was heating her face. She groaned and rolled over, forcing her eyes shut. She could still sleep, she knew. It was still early, after all.

She had no other choice but to rise, and quite suddenly at that when she heard the ruckus of cardboard boxed falling on the plastic tile floor. Lena suddenly sat, and nervously scanned her room. Her heart was beating loudly in her chest from the burst of adrenaline her brain had sent her, but she took a deep breath to calm herself when she realized that it was nothing. The pile of boxes she'd made to move around her room easily had just fallen over. However, it didn't occur to her that she had stacked them in such a way that it would be impossible without a push.

Now sure that she wouldn't be able to go back to sleep, she huffed and got up. She didn't even bother with the boxes. She'd have to unpack them later in the day, so no point in stacking them neatly again. She looked at her phone. It was only seven a. m., and she knew her friends wouldn't be up for at least another hour. She decided to pick up her things in the laundry room, and then go for a jogging. If she wanted to make the cut for the track and field team she'd need to get back into shape.

As silently as she could, Lena exited her bedroom. Hers was at the end of the long hall, with Fareeha's on her right, and Angela's on her left. Or was it the opposite? Lena still had a few problems with who's bedroom was where. She crossed the hall with a lightness in her steps, careful not to wake up her friends, and went through the dining room. Across from it stood both the living room, to her right, and an open kitchen to her left. In between both rooms was an old wooden door with faded paint on it. Lena pursed her lips hesitantly. Should she just open the door, or knock first? She decided to knock.

Her knuckles rapped on the door three times, and as Lena retracted her hand the door cricked open. First, only a head passed through. Messy purple hair, tired eyes hidden behind large black-rimmed glasses, and an annoyed grimace on her lips. Lena wondered if their fourth flatmate had even slept the previous night.

"Hey luv'!" Lena saluted the Latina.

"What do you want? Is it breakfast time already?" Sombra asked with irritation.

"Hum no, I'm here to pick up my laundry."

"Oh right."

Sombra opened the door just enough for Lena to sneak inside. For some reason, while they had proposed to find a house which had four bedrooms, Sombra had been completely fine with turning the garage into her personal space. Lena quickly glanced around, before Sombra could hush her away toward the laundry space. The garage door had been blocked by a wall of cardboard boxes. The bulb on the ceiling was a poor excuse of a light compared to what Sombra's two computer screens could do. Her massive computer was actually what took most of the space. Her bed was a simple cot with a pillow and a blanket, and an old teddy bear which Sombra had quickly hidden behind her before Lena could comment on it. At the other side of the room were the washing machine and dryer. It hadn't bothered Sombra one bit that her room also doubled as the laundry room.

Lena opened the dryer and placed her clothes in a laundry basket. Sombra stayed behind her the entire time, arms crossed as if she wanted to make sure Lena wouldn't move anything. Once she was sure she hadn't left anything inside, Lena picked up the basket. She shivered.

"Aren't you cold here?"

Sombra shrugged.

"Cold doesn't bother me much."

Lena walked slowly toward the door, admiring the numerous anime and video game posters Sombra had already attached to the walls. The Latina was almost pushing her out of her room by the time she reached the door.

"It's pretty neat," Lena commented.

"Course it is, it's my room. Now if you'll excuse me, I have work to do."

"Hum... Alright. I'm going for a run."

"I don't care, you know."

As soon as Lena's feet were out of the door's way Sombra closed it, and Lena could still hear her complaining about what kind of idiot would move in a new place with dirty laundry. Lena decided to ignore her and returned to her room.

Sombra really had been the odd man out of their group of four. When they'd decided to move all three of them in, Sombra had suddenly shown up, declared that she needed co-tenants and that the garage was enough. They'd accepted, mostly because she was Fareeha's best friend's younger sister. But still, Lena found strange that she almost never left her room.

Once Lena was ready, she left a note on the dining table (just in case), and exited through the front door, mindful to lock behind her as she left. She had barely left the driveway that her note was already been torn apart, and the pieces promptly thrown to the floor.

* * *

Sombra had spent the night doing research. It was what she did best, after all, but most of her findings had been worthless, or dated information, too old to be exploitable. She was ready to give up and call it a night, but a glance at her clock told her it was rather close to breakfast time, so she decided to go to sleep after breakfast. She opened a new tab and pulled up yet another news feed, just to check if there hadn't been anything new and interesting in the last hour or so.

Suddenly a knocking sound pulled her out of her computer screen. She heard it only faintly, as her ears were covered by rather massive headphones, but she knew she'd heard something strange. Slowly, she pulled her headphones off, and listened closely, looking around as best as she could in the darkness of her room. Her eyes burned from sleep deprivation and over-exposure to the screens' light, but she focused her eyes anyway. The sound seemed to have come from the washing machine.

With carefulness and measured motions, Sombra put her headphones on her desk and got up, the wheels of her chair squeaking as she did. Her eyes were fixed on the white box. She finally knew what had caused the knocking sound. The top of the machine had been closed, and she knew very well it wasn't the wind. One step at a time she got closer to the machine, each of her step producing only a light sound. Her ears were perked up, listening for another knocking sound. As she got to the machine, she reopened it with one hand, raising the lid. She glanced inside, but there was only darkness there, not even the slightest gleam from the drum. She took a step back and waited, expecting the lid to be shut once again. It didn't happen.

Sombra grimaced. She felt suddenly quite stupid. Had she been searching the Internet the entire night for something when it had been under her nose this whole time? She hoped not. She decided to keep it to herself for now. No need to warn the others about something that was only a hunch. At least Sombra hoped it only was a hunch.

* * *

Fareeha was already in the kitchen making breakfast when Angela emerged from her bedroom. Her first reflex was to stop by the bathroom to get a painkiller because her back was still killing her from all the boxes they had carried the previous day. She then headed for the kitchen, where she had to stop and take a deep breath. Fareeha was still in her pajamas, or what she used for pajamas anyway – a tank top which barely reached her shorts, which let free strong tan legs. Angela tried to ignore it as much as possible, just as she ignored the heat creeping up her neck.

"Oh, Angela, good morning!" Fareeha managed as she noticed Angela making her way to the glass cupboard.

The blond quickly swallowed her pill and managed a smile.

"Hello Fareeha, how was your night?"

"It was alright, I guess."

As the coffee machine finished feeling Fareeha's mug, she took it carefully and handed it toward Angela.

"Here. I know you need your daily feel of caffeine."

Angela was first surprised, and it was perhaps that which helped her keep her blushing at bay.

"Oh no, I... I can't. It's your mug and..."

"No, no I insist. I can make myself another one. I won't drink that much coffee anyway."

Angela smiled wholeheartedly, touched by the gesture. Fareeha quickly had to avert her eyes and pretended to be focused on the machine itself. Angela took the mug and blew lightly on the hot beverage. Fareeha quickly found another mug and placed it under the machine. It gave her an excuse to focus on something other than the cute blond only a few inches from her.

Angela glanced down the hall, half surprised not to see Lena bursting through her bedroom door.

"Speaking of coffee, where is Lena?" she asked.

Fareeha shrugged.

"I don't know. She wasn't in her bedroom when I got up. Maybe she went grocery shopping?"

Angela seemed to find it unlikely. They all had brought all the food they had left, and the four of them together had quite a lot.

"As Sombra emerged yet?"

"She came to pick up breakfast right before you got up."

Fareeha set the machine, and coffee began to pour in her cup with a loud pumping sound. Angela looked at the old garage door. She'd been the only one opposed to the idea of Sombra moving in with them, in the garage no less. It just felt weird.

"Well that's strange..."

Angela's attention shifted from the door to Fareeha who seemed to be battling with the toaster.

"Is it dead already? It worked perfectly when Sombra used it."

Angela frowned.

"What's wrong?"

"My toasts should be done by now..."

The taller girl frowned.

"It's not plugged in. How..."

Fareeha seemed thoroughly perplexed as to how the toaster had come unplugged. She began to turn it and twist it around, careful of her toast still inside, to try and understand how it could have lost its power source. Angela sipped her coffee. She assumed Fareeha had probably unplugged it by accident, by knocking into it or something. It was the most logical explanation she could think off, anyway.

* * *

While there still was no sign of Lena, and it was beginning to worry both of the girls, they bothered themselves with emptying their remaining boxes. Angela had quite a few left to unpack. Her numerous science school books and her entire wardrobe, as well as a few decorative items. She was going at it strategically, placing her cardboard box full of books on her desk chair, to put them on the shelf above her desk. A few she left on the desk to read before going back to school. She was almost at the end of the box when she heard her door cricking. At first, she thought nothing of it, expecting Fareeha, or even Lena, to walk in to ask her something. She only frowned when she heard nothing. She turned around, only to find her door ajar, almost closed, and all of her still full boxes gone.

A cold feeling ran down her spine at the realization. She rushed to the door, afraid someone had taken them thinking them empty. But that was stupid, she knew. Who would take heavy still taped boxes for empty? As she threw the door open, she almost tripped and fell on her boxes. She could feel her legs shaking. They were there alright, four boxes still closed by brown tape. How had they ended up here without her noticing when they were quite heavy, to begin with, she didn't know, and she almost didn't want to know. The thought alone froze her blood in her veins.

"Fareeha!" she called out as best as her strangled voice allowed her.

The door across from hers quickly opened, and Fareeha was about to rush outside to join her when she noticed all the boxes.

"What the..."

"Did you put them here?" Angela asked with a worried voice.

Fareeha frowned.

"Hum... no. What is going on?"

"I don't know. But one second they were in my room and the next they were here!"

Fareeha seemed even more confused than Angela.

"How is that even possible?"

It suddenly occurred to Angela that there was only one person moving around the house so quickly that anyone barely noticed her. She crossed her arms, her feature changing from worry to anger.

"Do you think Sombra did it?"

Fareeha shook her head.

"How could she?"

"Oh come on, there's only one person here who could have done it!"

Angela hopped over the boxes and rushed through the dining room, then the living room, and all the way to the garage door. She banged on it. As she angrily waited for Sombra to open, Fareeha reached her.

"Angela, maybe you should..."

She was cut when the garage door opened violently.

"I was sleeping what do you want?" Sombra asked, her eyes obviously half-open behind her glasses.

"Did you move my boxes out of my room?" Angela asked, barely containing her anger.

"I'm sorry, what?"

Angela began to rant once again about how her boxes had been moved out of her room without her noticing, but Sombra was only half-listening to her. She looked past her, toward the corridor, where large cardboard boxes had been stacked neatly.

"So, did you do it?"

Sombra's attention snapped back to the angry blonde.

"No, I did not. Like I said I was sleeping. I worked all night. Can I go back to sleep now?"

Angela scrutinized the girl a bit longer as if she could tell from her tired face whether she was lying or not.

The front door suddenly opened, and all three women looked at Lena as she made her way in.

"Hi guys! Sorry took me longer than I thought. I met Emily, you know, that girl from Track and Field. We ran together for a bit before going to this Starbuck two block down. It was nice."

Lena left her keys on the hook after locking the door, then took off her trainers and sweat jacket. As she entered the living room, she was surprised to find all three girls assembled on Sombra's doorstep, with the Latina looking quite tired, Fareeha looking both confused and sheepish, while Angela was utterly angry.

"Where have you been?" the blond asked.

"Hum... I went jogging? I left a note on the dining table." Lena replied, just as confused a Fareeha.

Angela glanced at Sombra, who shook her head as if to signify that she was out of it. She then looked at Fareeha, who shook her head as well.

"We didn't find your note."

"Well it must've flown away, I don't know... I mean, I told Sombra..."

Once again Angela's glare stopped on the Latina, who only took in a deep breath, and closed the door on the blond. Angela angrily returned to her room, determined to move her boxes out of the corridor on her own. Fareeha quickly ran toward her, shouting:

"Angela wait! I'll help you!"

Lena only stayed there for a few more seconds, confused and wondering if she hadn't switched dimension at one point during her jogging.

* * *

Lena's feeling of being trapped in a different universe only grew as the day went on. By nightfall, it had become rather clear that something was messing with them, though none of them knew, or dared to assume what it could be.

It only slightly bothered Lena, by moving around things she'd unpacked and changing their location from one shelf to another. Fareeha's was a bit less comfortable, to say the least. Every time she tried to turn the water tab on hot water, only cool water came out. This became a real problem when she tried to take a shower and came out shivering. Lena tried it a few seconds later, and hot water did come pouring down.

Angela probably had it the worst, as her boxes kept on being carried out of the room and into the hall, to the point that she decided to leave them there and bring them back one at a time. Like Lena, her belongings were being moved around or even exchanged with other people's. She was still convinced Sombra had something to do about it, but she didn't know how to prove it yet. By dinner time she waited with an angry look on her face for the Latina to emerge from the garage. Fareeha had been glancing carefully at the blond, who'd been cutting vegetables for a salad with a rhythmic tack. She was worried the blond would cut herself without noticing since she kept staring at the garage door.

When the taller girl's attention went back to what she'd been doing, placing the frozen pizzas in the oven, she suddenly noticed it had shut down, and groan. She began to fidget with the buttons, trying to turn it back on, and she huffed when the light finally went back on, only to be turned off instantly after.

"Goddamn it!"

She was almost tempted to hit the oven but realized it would do nothing good. Angela's attention went from the door to Fareeha and back to the door. She was convinced Sombra had something to do with this and had decided the Latina wouldn't have anything to eat until she'd told them the truth. Lena and Fareeha didn't agree with her idea, though.

Finally, the garage door open, and Sombra emerged, stretching her arms over her head and groaning contemptibly when she heard her vertebrae popping back into place. She first looked over at Lena who was done setting the table and was now on the couch, looking at her phone, then to the two other girls still in the kitchen.

"So, what's for dinner tonight?"

"Nothing," Angela replied acidly.

Sombra raised a surprised eyebrow.

"Nothing? You sure? Cause that looks like salad and pizza to me."

Angela angrily stepped into the dining room with her salad bowl, and forcefully placed it on the table, making the content of the bowl jump up in the process.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I meant nothing for you."

While Sombra was a bit surprised by Angela's anger, she knew it wasn't unfounded. She'd spent the day in her room doing more research or sleeping.

"Okay, I get it. I know I didn't help much today, but I was working. You just have to tell me when, and promise, I'll make dinner tomorrow, alright?"

Angela crossed her arms even more angrily.

"You were in your room, hum? Then who moved my things, or Lena's? Who played with the water so that Fareeha only had cold water?"

Sombra frowned, confused. It couldn't be, really, but it all seemed exactly like the kind of things he would do.

Lena and Fareeha had joined them in the dining room, if not to calm Angela then at least to hear what Sombra had to say.

"It wasn't me, but you probably won't believe me if I tell you who it was."

"Oh, of course! What a convenient excuse!"

"Angela, just calm down, alright..." Lena tried.

"No, Lena, I..."

But before Angela could continue her rant, the light in the dining room began to flicker. All four girls looked at the light-bulb above the table, and the switches along the wall. Soon enough the entire house was turned into a light show, every bulb flickering uncontrollably. Lena was terrified by the sight, while Fareeha clenched her teeth, ready to protect her friends. Angela had dropped her angry mask for that of confusion and she felt her legs shaking, ready to give under her at any second. Only Sombra didn't look scared, just mildly annoyed and exasperated.

Suddenly all light went off, and no one dared to speak. Just as Angela was about to ask if it was over, a frightening laugh echoed around the house. It was deep, and gravely, and it sent shivers down the girls' spines. Soon enough, the laugh was accompanied by a cloud of dark smoke, rising above the table. Angela was screaming now, scared to death, while Sombra was even more exasperated. Before the whole show could unfold, she yelled:

"Gabe! What are you doing here?!"

It seemed to calm everyone, even the ghastly shape. The three girls shot a confused look to the Latina, then back to the cloud. It was now quickly disappearing, evaporating into nothing. The laugh continued, but it was less tainted with evil intents and felt warmer. The shape of a man appeared suddenly, floating over the table, holding his belly as he laughed wholeheartedly.

"Oh you should have seen your faces, it was just priceless!"

"Dad, the hell are you doing here? You're supposed to be hunting with Jesse." Sombra asked once again, her arms crossed, visibly annoyed by the man's presence.

Lena, Fareeha, and Angela, however, watched on quite confused and almost intrigued. Sombra's father was a ghost? There was no denying it, the fifty looking man floating over their dining table was gray, and transparent.

"Oh hija, you should learn how to check your pockets!" he declared as he laughter slowly died down.

Sombra huffed and rushed to the coat-hanger. Meanwhile, all three girls continued to stare carefully at the ghost still floating above them. None of them dared to move, unsure what the procedure was when coming face to face with a ghost.

"Goddamn it!"

Sombra came back quickly, holding in her hands a black woolen hat.

"Hijo de puta! I'll call him, and he'll come pick you up! I don't care, we made a goddamn deal!"

But before Sombra could rush back to the garage Lena cleared her throat. She had passed the shock of coming face to face with a dead man. All eyes turned to her, and she cleared her throat once again before asking:

"Hum, what is going on?"

"My dad is a ghost." Sombra simply replied.

"Yeah... I gathered that much."

She gave a look to Sombra which seemed to be asking for more. After a groan, the Latina replied:

"Well, basically, my dad's soul's tied to this old hat, and Jesse was supposed to take it with him when he left. But this son of a bitch tricked me and placed it in my coat pocket!"

"Oh, you better call him now. You know how he is, always keeping miles away from civilization!" Sombra's dad declared with a smirk.

"Shit! Well, I guess you're going to have to stay here, at least until I can get a hold of him."

Sombra was about to turn around and return to her bedroom, but Angela shouted:

"Wait a minute, you mean we are going to have to live with your father now?"

Sombra smirked.

"Oh yeah. But don't worry, he's a shitty poltergeist."

"Hey, I can hear you, you know!"

"I'm warning you if he pulls the same things he did today..."

"Oh come on, it was just a few harmless prank!" the ghost defended himself.

Sombra took a deep breath and crossed her arms.

"Alright Gabe, if you want to stay, you're going to have to listen. No more pranks, no more evil laugh, and no wandering in the bedrooms, alright."

"Especially, the bedrooms." Fareeha agreed.

"Alright, alright, I'll just stay on the couch then..."

Gabe floated away, his head passing through the ceiling as he reached the living room. Sombra threw the woolen hat on the couch, and he sat next to it.

"Don't worry," she declared "he's mostly harmless."

All three girls shared a glance, and Fareeha declared:

"Let's talk about this another time. I'm hungry when I'm nervous."

"Oh yeah, pizza night!" they could hear Gabe shout from the living room.

"No conseguirás nada!" Sombra shouted back.

"Por el momento..." Gabe replied.


	2. Step Into my Parlor

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sombra and Lena go to a party, where they meet some interesting girls.

**Chapter 2**

Step into my Parlor

 

The beginning of Lena's school year had been a bit chaotic, to say the least. While yes, she had fortunately made the cut for the Track and Field team, and not just in the reserves, she had also been quite tired, and it had nothing to do with her classes giving her too much work. The first few nights in the house, she'd been woken up by every single noise she'd heard, most of which were made by Gabriel in the living room. From time to time she'd had a nightmare about the ghost, hearing his demonic laugh in her sleep. She knew it wouldn't last, or at least she hoped so, and Sombra had promised it wouldn't last anyway since Jesse was supposed to come pick their father up soon, but still.

So when Lena had been invited to a beginning of term party, she had hesitated. She was pretty tired, but at the same time, it would be a good occasion to stop thinking about the ghost haunting their couch. She'd asked Angela and Fareeha whether they wanted to come, but the both of them had declined, though Lena supposed Fareeha had declined because Angela had. Surprisingly, Sombra had decided to come as well. Lena wished Emily, her friend from Track and Field, would come, but she didn't dare to ask during their last training of the week.

Now there Lena was, standing like a cactus in a corner, a cup of something in her hand. She had arrived with Sombra, but the Latina had left her as soon as she'd noticed her "prey" walking around. Lena found weird that Sombra talked in such a way about another girl, but now that she knew she was actually a monster hunter, it made sense, somehow.

From her corner, Lena had yet to notice anyone resembling Emily, but it was rather hard anyway. There were a lot of people, and it was almost impossible to move around. Plus the music was so loud Lena considered going outside, just because she didn't want to blow her ears off just yet.

She looked around, sipping her cup. She could barely recognize anyone here, which explained why she'd had to rebuff a few boys already. She'd spotted Sombra at one point or another, talking with a short girl with a bubblegum pink jacket and long brown hair. They seemed to be hitting it off pretty well.

"Excuse me?"

Lena looked beside her. Over the music, she had barely heard the voice of the woman now standing very close to her. Lena's eyes grew wide. The woman was tall, with a pale skin and dark blue hair tied into a ponytail. Their gaze crossed, and Tracer gulped down. The woman had amazing amber eyes like Lena had never seen before. Lena barely dared to let her gaze fall lower than the woman's steely face, and not just because she was wearing a very tight and low cut shirt.

"What... what can I help you with, luv?" Lena managed to let out, hopefully loud enough for the woman to hear her.

The woman smirked, and Lena felt her heart stop. She leaned forward, until her mouth was close to Lena's ear, to the point she could feel her breath against the shell of her ear.

"Well, I was wondering why a cute girl like you was all alone here. It is a party, isn't it?"

A long shiver ran down Lena's spine. French accent, her weakness.

"Oh... hum... You're French?" Lena muttered.

"Yes, I am an exchange student. My name is Amélie."

"Nice to meet ya', I'm Lena."

Amélie smiled, and Lena could almost feel it from her lips against her ear.

"What a lovely name, for a lovely girl."

* * *

A few steps away from Lena and her new friend, Sombra had been speaking with a girl she'd just met, named Hana. She'd stumbled on the short girl by accident while looking around, and they'd been chatting as much as the loud music would let them ever since.

"You have never played Starcraft!" Hana shouted.

Sombra's gaze flitted about, passing from Lena to Hana as she focused on the both of them at the same time.

"Nope. I'm not a very good strategist." Sombra replied as her eyes lingered on Hana's face.

She saw in the girl's dark eyes that she knew Sombra hadn't been paying a hundred percent attention to their conversation for the last minute or so.

"Well, it's a fun game nonetheless. I mean, if you can't get behind the mechanics and all, I get why you wouldn't want to play it, but still..."

Sombra's eyes lingered on Lena, as she noticed the girl and her new companion were moving outside. Sombra's attention then moved back to the shorter girl who had crossed her arms with a huff.

"Just tell me if I'm bothering you."

Sombra smirked amicably. She almost wished she hadn't been wearing contacts, so she could have pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose.

"No, no, you're not, chica. I was just looking over at my friend. I think she just met someone. They went outside."

"Oh, alright. Though I remember you telling me quite clearly that you only worked alone."

Sombra's smirked grew wider.

"But right now I'm not working, am I? This is a party, after all, we should be having fun."

"Fair enough. So tell me, what's your favorite game then?"

Sombra seemed to be thinking for a few seconds.

"Maybe you've heard of this game, it's called Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons."

Hana's eyes lit up at the name of the game.

"Do I know this game? It's amazing! A bit hard to play at the beginning, but damn if it isn't pretty! And the story!"

Sombra nodded.

"Yeah, I like the story too."

* * *

Lena tightened her jacket around her as Amélie took her outside. She hadn't realized as hot it was inside, or how hot her own body had grown. There were only a couple of people outside, and they were all nursed by the base of the music pushing through the walls.

Amélie had been holding her hand by the tip of her fingers, sending shivers along the short girl's arm. She'd lead them as much away from the party as possible, next to the garden tool-shed.

"So tell me, Lena, what do you do?" Amélie asked as trapped the shorter girl against the shed, their bodies so close Lena thought she could feel Amélie's body heat against her own.

"Hum... well, believe it or not, I wanted to become a pilot, but I'd have to go back to England for that and all, so, for now, I'm studying to become an English teacher. And I'm part of the Track and Field team, too."

"Why, this is very interesting."

Lena felt a bit proud that such a pretty girl would found her poor choice of career interesting. Teaching English was more of a default idea than anything.

"And you, what are you studying?"

"Right now? The shape of your lips."

Lena felt her head heating like crazy and knew her cheeks had turned bright red. Man, Amélie was so sexy she knew the taller girl would be the death of her. She felt the French girl leaning toward her, their nose almost touching. Amélie's light breath tickled her nose. It smelled of alcohol, she found, and a flowery scent which Lena particularly enjoyed. She managed to glance in those deep amber eyes, which almost seemed to glow in the relative darkness of the garden.

"Now, if you don't mind me, I would like to kiss you."

Lena was about to tell her to go ahead, but every word she knew flew out of her head the instant Amélie's lips brushed against hers. Lena only had one thought: return the kiss, deepen the kiss, and never let go of the other girl. She did almost instantly, pushing her lips against Amélie, kissing her back. Very quickly, Amélie took control of things, pushing Lena flat against the wooden shed, one of her hand passing along Lena's waist while the other rested on the girl's neck. Lena's hand had threaded through Amélie's hair, and she thought she would lose herself in their kiss, and open her eyes only to find she'd had hallucinated. The feeling of the other girl's lips against her own was almost unreal.

When they separated, Amélie pulled on Lena's lower lips with her teeth, eliciting a moan from the shorter girl. Lena was incredibly out of breath, while Amélie seemed completely fine. While the shorter girl took in a deep breath, trying to find the words to express how amazing their kiss was, Amélie had begun to drag kisses along Lena's neck, making the Brit shudder in her arms.

Lena knew her knees would probably give out soon if Amélie continued. She was just about to tell her so, when she suddenly felt something sharp, knife-like, tore through the skin of her shoulder. She yelped in pain, and pushed Amélie away, instantly covering the part where she'd been hurt with her hand. She was confused at first, wondering if she'd perhaps twisted her shoulder muscle or something. But she felt something hot and sticky against her palm. She looked at it, and saw the glimmer of a dark liquid on her fingers. She looked over at Amélie, who hadn't moved since Lena had pushed her away.

"You bit me? Why'd you bit me?"

Amélie's eyes found Lena's, and the short girl's blood suddenly froze. There was nothing warm or sexy about the French girl's eyes anymore. Only danger, and hunger. A smile parted her bloodied lips, and Lena noticed in her long fangs, so long they were still visible when she closed her mouth.

"Because it's always easier to eat when they don't wriggle so much."

Adrenaline made Lena's heart drum in her chest. It suddenly down on her that she would die, eaten alive by this monster. She didn't even know what kind of a monster it was.

Lena instantly tried to run away, taking a step toward the glass door of the house. She felt light-headed, however, and it wasn't long before her legs gave out under her. She crashed on the lawn, her sight blurring. She tried a cry for help but not a sound managed to pass through her throat. With horror, she felt her eyes closing and the world around her becoming soft and wholly.

* * *

Sombra had counted to four hundred in her head while maintaining a conversation with Hana. When she'd noticed Lena was still outside, she knew it was time to act.

"... and the gameplay is so unique, you know, so..."

"Hana," Sombra shouted to be heard over the music "I'm sorry to interrupt you but I have to do something very quickly."

The shorter girl, at first, seemed a bit confused to have been interrupted in her exposition, but a quick glance at Sombra's eyes told her everything she needed to know.

"Can I come with?"

Sombra shrugged.

"Sure, why not, as long as you don't make things more difficult then they are."

Sombra made her way through the mass of people crowding the house until she reached the glass door leading outside. Hana followed as best as she could, using her small stature to slip through the crowd. Once outside, both girls were glad to hear the relative silence and feel the fresh air against their faces. It only took a few seconds for Sombra to know where to look. She opened her jacket, and took a beautiful silver dagger out of her inside pocket. Hana watched her do with a certain curiosity.

"So are you a hunter or something like that?"

Sombra smirked.

"Something like that, yeah."

She then indicated the other girl to stay silent, and together they made their way toward the tool-shed across the garden. Even in the relative darkness of the night, Sombra could see the small blood stains on the lawn right beside the shed. She tried to control her heart, keeping it as slow and rhythmic as possible. Hana, however, knew her heart was just about to explode out of her chest. She tried to take deep breathes, but the adrenaline in her blood and her enthusiasm were hard to rein in.

Suddenly the shed jerked to the left, making Hana jump to the side, her hands on her mouth. She hadn't screamed, but barely. Sombra, who seemed to have been hardly surprised, motioned for her to step back. Hana was only too happy to oblige.

Sombra slowly placed her hand on the shed's cricking door, then counted to three, her other hand holding her weapon tighter. At three, she pushed the door open. Hana peeked inside. She was expecting to see some kind of monster, or even blood everywhere, but it wasn't the case. It was dark, and she could make up the shape of a lawnmower and a workbench, but nothing else.

Sombra took a large glowstick out of her pocket, and cracked it. It began to glow with a red light, only bright enough to be seen. Sombra threw it inside the shed, and they finally saw it. The monster.

The glowstick rolled over the lawnmower, and got stuck behind one of the handles, just under the creature. Hana gasped at its sight. She'd had a glance of the woman before, and could only recognize her hair, still dark blue and tied in a ponytail, and her eyes, amber, cold and hungry. Her jaw seemed to have been busted by the growth of hundreds of sharp fangs, tingling with what Hana assumed was spit. Later, Sombra would tell her it was venom. The monster's entire body from the waist down had been replaced by that of a spider. A large opisthosoma, dark and shining red under the light of the stick, helped support six long and disgusting looking legs. Under the light of the glowstick, both girls noticed the silky cocoon attached to the wall of the shed, out of which Lena's face barely appeared.

"I knew I had smelled one of your kind, Hunter." the giant half spider half woman said, her voice chilling Hana to her core.

"Aye, Frat parties like those are a buffet to monsters like you. I wasn't going to let such an opportunity pass." Sombra replied with a smirk.

"It's too late, she is already poisoned."

Sombra shook her head.

"Until you've eaten her, it's never too late."

Sombra nimbly jumped over the lawnmower, catching the glowstick in her free hand in the process. The spider pulled back, walking on the wall to avoid the hunter's blade. Hana stayed just at the entrance of the shed, not wanting to be a hindrance. She noticed how the normal hand of the monster had grown sharp claws, and hoped nothing would happen to Sombra.

The hunter had everything under control, as usual. With a few missed dagger swings she sent the monster crawling back until all of its spider-legs were standing on the wall. Then, Hana suddenly feared the monster would catch Sombra from above, but as soon as it approached its human face, and sharp teeth, to the hunter, she raised the red glowstick right in the monster's eyes. It recoiled with a screeching sound, giving enough time to Sombra to roll away from the spider. Then, with inhuman swiftness, Sombra's dagger cut through the monster's chest, from her spider's opisthosoma to her human neck. It screeched in pain, its human hand roaming over its chest, trying to prevent what Hana could only assume was blood from leaking out of the wound. It gave Sombra just enough time to bury her dagger in the monster's gut, and pull the weapon out.

Hana watched in horror as the monster began to shake and convulse, blood flowing out of its wounds. Its legs began to retract under its body, until it could no longer stand. It rolled to its side, letting out high pitched sounds which were so painful Hana had to cover her ears.

Finally, the sound stopped, and Hana looked tentatively at the giant spider woman. She was completely still. Sombra was standing around it, probably checking if it really was dead.

"Hana, are you still there?"

"Hum, yeah why?"

"There's a switch on your left. Turn it on."

Hana carefully stepped inside the shed, and under the red light of the glowstick, she found the outline of a switch. She turned it on, and the neon on the ceiling suddenly came to life.

"There was a switch this whole time! Why didn't you turn it on before!" the shorter girl complained.

"Because Spiders don't like red lights."

Sombra pocketed the still glowing stick, and Hana approached carefully the dead monster. Now that the light had been turned on, she saw that the monster's skin was actually of a light purple shade, while her blood was dark, almost black. She tried not to look too much at her distorted face, as those empty amber eyes send shivers down her spine.

Hana's attention switched to Sombra when the girl cut Lena's cocoon free from the wall, her dagger passing through the sticky web like it was butter. Once the cocoon was on the ground, Hana noticed how pale and green Lena's face looked through the web. Carefully, Sombra began to cut the cocoon in half, until Lena was free. Instantly, as a large quantity of air arrived in the girl's lungs once again, Lena began to yell in pain and convulse. Hana felt a cold sensation fill her stomach. Maybe the monster had been right, and it was too late? One look at Sombra told her that it wasn't the case. The Latina was as calm as ever when she pulled a syringe out of her boot, and stab Lena's neck with it. Hana watched as the bright green liquid was pushed into Lena's body, and soon enough she stopped yelling, and fell asleep.

"Alright" Sombra declared as she threw the syringe away. "She should wake up in two days, three at worst."

The hunter then turned to Hana, who was still watching curiously.

"You still there? How come?"

"What, why would I be anywhere else?"

Sombra seemed surprised.

"I don't know. Usually, people run away at the first sight of a monster."

Hana smirked.

"Well, I have never been afraid of a spider before."

Sombra smirked in turn.

"Well, good thing you're here, cause now we need to carry Lena to my car."

"What?"

Sombra lowered herself, and threw Lena's sleeping form on her shoulder like it was nothing, surprising Hana who's eyes grew wide.

"Just kidding."

Sombra was about to leave the shed when Hana suddenly remembered there still was the dead body of a giant spider woman to dispose of.

"Hum, Sombra, what do we do about the spider?"

Sombra smirked, and didn't even stop to reply:

"What spider?"

Hana looked behind her in confusion, and frowned. The body of the monster was already half dissolved into a pile of ash.

* * *

Lena woke up suddenly, out of breath and shouting in pain about someone bitting her. She was instantly shushed by a pillow landing on her face. She pushed the pillow away, and looked around. She was back in her bedroom, in her bed, even. The sun was setting through her window, letting only a low light pass through her curtains. Beside her, in a desk chair, she noticed Sombra napping. She frowned. What was Sombra doing in her room?

"You're lucky, you know."

Lena looked over at the door, where Gabe was standing, still as gray as usual. He was leaning against her door-frame, technically not in her bedroom.

"I don't know a lot of people who were targeted by a Spider and lived to tell the tale."

Lena remembered being bitten by this very sexy girl, Amélie, but what was this story about a Spider? She frowned.

"Sombra was tracking a man-eating monster killing off teenagers at parties. If she hadn't been there you would have been a Spider's next lunch."

Lena looked over at Sombra, who was still sleeping soundly in her desk chair. Lena thought it didn't look very comfortable, but it didn't seem to bother the Latina. She couldn't believe Sombra had saved her life. Then it suddenly hit her. The reason why Sombra had suddenly decided to come, why she had abandoned her as soon as they had arrived.

"She didn't save my life, she used me as bait!"

Gabe exploded into laughter.

"That she did. An old trick I taught her. She's a very good student, you know. Never forgets a thing, unlike her idiot of a brother!"

Lena glared at the ghost, who hovered away from her bedroom, still laughing like he had just heard the greatest joke there ever was. Lena's glare then went to Sombra, who was still fast asleep. Lena's gaze soften. She felt her neck hitching, and passed a hand over where the woman had bitten her. Thankfully someone had washed the wound already, but she knew this was sure to leave a mark.

* * *

Lena was less than pleased to discover she had missed her Monday classes because of the venom, and had to work twice as hard to get back on her feet. Thankfully she hadn't missed any Track and Field training. On Tuesday afternoon, when she sat in the tiers to tie her running shoes before the training began, someone came to sit beside her. Lena was happily surprised to see Emily by her side, also getting ready to run.

"Hey, Em, I didn't see you at the party Saturday night!"

The redhead stood up and tied her hair, raising her shirt just enough for Lena to see a bit of pale skin and her navel.

"I just passed, you know. But I saw you, you were talking with quite the catch."

"Hum?"

Lena suddenly wanted to hit herself. She had forgotten Amélie had been a gorgeous woman before she'd bitten her and, apparently, tried to eat her.

"Yeah no, she wasn't... She was just nice looking, you know. She turned out to be quite sticky. But thank god, she's gone."

"Gone?"

Lena had a second of silence, during which her empty brain tried to come up with something.

"Yeah, she went back to France, you know, where she came from. Don't ask me why, good riddance anyway!"

Emily sat back next to Lena.

"It's a shame." she pushed lightly her shoulder against Lena. "She seemed to have quite an effect on you."

Lena blushed.

"Yeah, but what does a shell matter when the inside is disgusting... Anyway, time to run!"

Lena stood up, only too eager to put an end to this conversation. She jogged down to the tracks, Emily in tow, and began to warm up. Emily once again joined her, and suddenly declared:

"Oh, by the way, there's another party next week. Want to come with?"

Lena grimaced.

"No thanks. I think I'm all partied out."


	3. You May Experience some Changes...

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fareeha finally learns her family secret.

**Chapter 3**

You May Experience some Changes...

 

Fareeha had been mowing the lawn of their small garden behind the house when she'd heard the doorbell rang. She stopped, confused as to who could be at the door. Angela was still in the lab until midday. Lena had gone jogging, but she usually wouldn't be back before midday as well, especially if she'd stumble on Emily on her way, and she had her keys. And Sombra was somewhere, Fareeha didn't really know. Either sleeping or on the lookout for something.

Fareeha shut the lawnmower and rubbed her hands. She passed through the door, entering the dining room, and glanced toward the garage door. It was still shut tight, meaning if Sombra was there she wasn't moving a muscle to answer the door. As she approached the door Fareeha asked:

"Lena if you lost your keys again we are not spending the entire afternoon looking for them."

Though somehow, as she was about to open the door, she felt she knew who was on the other side. Indeed, as she slowly opened the door, she found her father on the other side.

"Dad?" she asked, frowning. "What are you doing here?"

He smiled, though Fareeha noticed it was a tense smile.

"Hello, Fareeha! I was hoping we could talk, if it doesn't bother you, obviously..."

Fareeha was finally passed the surprise of finding her father on the other side of the door, and stepped aside, still a bit wary as to why he was there.

"Sure, come on in."

Her father smiled again, still as nervous as before. He was a mountain of a man, taller and larger than most. His arms were strong, and his jaw squared. His face was circled by white, from his thick beard to his ear length hair. Finally, he had a large scar over his right eye, which was probably how he'd loosen sight with it, leaving only a blind milky orb. But most importantly, her father was usually a loud man, rarely afraid of anything, and they hadn't spoken in almost two years.

He stepped inside, a wary expression on his face. He had to hunch a bit to fit inside the dining room.

"It's very nice." her father declared as he glanced around the room.

"Thanks. We're alone, I think, let me just check."

Fareeha quickly trotted to the garage door and knocked loudly on it.

"Sombra, you in there?"

Since she heard no answer, not even a sleepy grunt of agreement, she assumed the garage was empty. She double checked, throwing the door open. Once again, no reply. She closed the door and returned to her father, who was still awkwardly hunched over the table in the dining room. As she stood beside him she felt once again like a child, so small and kept out of all the conversation her parents had.

"You can sit down," she said, indicating one of the chairs.

He obliged, carefully sitting in one of the chairs which were just a bit small for him. She hesitated, first wanting to sit beside him before she decided to take the seat across from him. Her heart was beating louder and louder in her chest, afraid of what her father might have to say.

"So, why did you come? You could have just called, you know..."

He sighed.

"I don't believe this is a conversation to have over the phone. Alright. Hum... Where to start..."

Fareeha felt herself shaking. She knew in her gut what her father had to tell her was important, and would change her life, but she wasn't sure she was ready to take it.

"Okay, let's start with the easier part."

He took in a deep breath and let out:

"I am not your father."

Fareeha almost fell out of her chair. Her heart stopped completely. She was glad she'd been seating because she knew she would have fallen had she been standing. She felt her breath catch in her throat.

"What?"

"I adopted you when your mother and I got married. You were one, and you don't remember it, but I felt you should know it now. Since I'm supposed to tell you about all of the family secrets... well..."

Fareeha felt her head turning. She couldn't even look at the man in front of her. He wasn't her biological father, and it suddenly opened her to a new array of questions. Who was he then? Why hadn't her mother ever tell her before?

She gulped down before trying to speak. She wanted to tell her father that it didn't really matter, but she found she couldn't. Instead, she blurted out:

"This is the easiest part?"

Her voice broke. What could be harder to tell than that?

Her father cleared his throat.

"It is the easiest to believe, really. Even I don't really believe it, sometimes."

Fareeha felt a cold sensation bubbling in her stomach. The revelation that her father had adopted her was already mind-blowing enough, and she wasn't sure she was ready for something even more unbelievable. She took a deep breath and said:

"Shoot."

"There is a curse on the Amari family."

Fareeha frowned.

"A curse? What do you mean?"

"I don't really know all the details, but your mother told me a long time ago one of your ancestors was cursed to become some kind of werewolf. The curse has been passed down from generation to generation. Your mother was determined to find a way to break it."

Fareeha couldn't help but interrupt him:

"Wait a minute. Is that what mum has been doing this whole time? Trying to break the curse?"

"Yes."

Fareeha suddenly felt her anxiousness melting away and being replaced by boiling anger.

"Why hasn't she told me anything! She could have told me about all this before she left!"

Her father sighed.

"It's more complicated than that. At the time the curse was beginning to affect you too. She'd found a way to delay it on you, but it still wasn't enough, and soon it will work its way onto you too."

Fareeha crossed her arms. She couldn't believe it. Not the curse part, that she could completely see her ancestor being so stubborn that they would be cursed, but the fact that her mother had never told her about it, it was baffling.

"So this curse then, what does it do?" she asked, barely containing the anger in her voice.

"Well, just like I said. It should turn you into a werewolf come the next full moon. Which is tonight. It's why I couldn't delay this conversation any longer."

"And what if mum was wrong? What if the curse had been broken, or it didn't affect me."

"It is already affecting you, but you don't know it. Your mother always said it began with the ears. Hasn't your earing gone better the past few weeks?"

Fareeha tried to think about the last few weeks, whether she did hear things better, but couldn't think of anything.

"No, it hasn't," she replied, sure of herself.

"Well, be careful anyway. When the curse will take over you, you will lose complete control over your body. You could harm your friends or a passerby outside. You should try and hide in the forest tonight, far from others."

Fareeha shook her head.

"I don't need to since this curse is not affecting me."

She wasn't about to go camping suddenly when it was movie night, the only excuse she had to hold Angela a bit closer than she should.

Her father sighed. She really was as stubborn as her mother.

"Alright, but please, be careful. If you feel anything strange going on, call me. I'll stay in town for now."

* * *

By the time Angela had returned, Fareeha had played her conversation with her father in her head about a dozen times. She was sure this curse wasn't working on her, and yet she also knew how wrong she was. She quickly noticed how her hearing had improved, like suddenly having the knowledge that it was supposed to made it even more obvious. She could hear perfectly Lena coming home even though she was still mowing the lawn outside. She could hear Sombra typing on her computer when she was seating on the couch in the living room. But somehow, she hadn't noticed Angela coming home, and talking to her.

"Fareeha? Fareeha?"

The dark haired girl had been pushed out of her thoughts by Angela's voice. The blond was standing in front of her, concern written on her face.

"Fareeha, are you alright?"

"Yeah, sorry, I was just a bit out of it..."

Angela's smile made her heart beat just a bit faster.

"It's alright. Lena told me you mowed the lawn this morning?"

"Oh, yeah. I know Lena was supposed to do it, but she's still playing her spider bite as an excuse not to do her chores, and I was a bit bored, so..."

"It's alright. It was very nice of you. You must be exhausted. Let me take care of lunch."

Fareeha frowned. She wasn't tired from pushing the lawnmower, actually, she felt just fine. Why would Angela assume she was tired?

"I'm fine, actually. I can set the table if you want."

"Are you sure? You look a bit paler than usual."

Her heart sank in her chest. Could it be the curse? Fareeha decided it wasn't. She would be fine, she knew. It was probably nothing.

"I swear, Angela, I'm fine." She said as she stood up.

"Alright... but if you don't feel okay, tell me instantly, alright."

Fareeha replied with a smile, charmed by the concern Angela felt toward her. Then she had to hold a frown. Was it her own heart she was hearing, or Angela's?

As the blond walked toward the kitchen, Lena walked happily out of her room.

"Oh, hi Angie! What's cooking?"

"For you, nothing, since you didn't mow the lawn and let Fareeha do it."

"Oh come on! I'll... clean the bathroom this afternoon."

"You better."

* * *

Fareeha decided that this particular afternoon was the weirdest she'd ever experience. This assessment would actually change over the next few months, but at the time it really had been Fareeha's strangest afternoon. She'd spent most of it laying on her bed, trying to figure out whether the curse had begun to affect her or not. She didn't really know how cruses worked and didn't want to ask Sombra because she knew if she did Sombra would know something was up.

Her hearing had improved, at least she was fifty percent sure it did. Sometimes she could hear Angela scribbling her notes in the room across the hall, and sometimes she barely noticed Lena yelling from the living room that the video game she was playing was the worst. She'd looked on the Internet what else she could find on curse, and found that the majority of sources said that each curse had a different result, which didn't help her much.

She'd then tried to think about how this curse could affect. It was supposed to turn her into a werewolf, wasn't it? Then her smell should improve too, and it didn't. She wasn't tired, but she didn't feel like running around either. Her nails hadn't grown either, nor did her teeth. By the end of the day, she'd convinced herself she'd been imagining everything, and this curse wasn't affecting her at all.

After dinner Lena, Angela and Fareeha all sat on the couch and began arguing about which movie they should watch. This night, Lena wanted to watch a superhero flick, which Angela wasn't too fond of. So Fareeha suggested watching a comedy, which Angela wasn't too fond of either. By the end, Sombra had opened the garage door, picked up the first DVD case she'd found, put it on, and sent a pointed glare their way. Usually, she would have walked back in her room, but this time she stopped on her way there and frowned.

"Fareeha, are you alright?"

Fareeha felt her blood freezing over. Was something going on? Had Sombra gotten wind of anything? Maybe she had really been in the garage while she'd been talking with her father. Or perhaps Gabriel had heard everything and told her about it? Usually, Sombra took him with her when she left the house, just because he was a massive pain, but maybe she'd forgotten him this time.

"I'm fine, why?"

"Don't know. You look a bit pale."

"See! I'm not the only one thinking it." Angela declared.

"I swear I'm fine. I'm not feverish, I'm not tired, it's probably a trick of the light."

Sombra shrugged and returned to the garage. Lena sat on the big puffy armchair in the corner, leaving the couch free for Angela and Fareeha. They always did the same thing during movie night, beginning at a relatively good distance from one another, and slowly inching closer to the other, until the met silently in the middle. As soon as Lena had figured it out she'd decided to never sit on the couch during movie nights.

Angela and Fareeha met in the middle of the couch about an hour into the movie. As usual, Fareeha couldn't really tell what it was about, because Angela's presence and body-heat beside hers were very distracting. Even more so than usual. Fareeha suddenly felt hot, as if she'd been under a boiling shower for the past hour or so. Quickly the heat evolved into a serious headache, which had her convinced that rather than being cursed she'd caught the flu. She wasn't the only one to notice it, as Angela moved just enough to feel how hot the air around Fareeha was.

"Fareeha, are you sure you are okay?"

But before Fareeha could try to deny it Angela placed a hand on her forehead, only to pull away immediately.

"Wow, you're boiling."

"It's nothing, I must've caught something..."

"Then you should rest."

"But it's movie night!" she protested, as if it meant anything.

"Fareeha, you are literally melting right now. Go to bed, and I'll bring you something for the fever."

Fareeha was about to protest, but the stern look Angela gave her was enough to dissuade her. She stood up, still feeling mostly fine and not as feverish as she knew she should feel, and walked to her bedroom.

It was only when she reached the door to her room that Fareeha finally felt it. Something deep within her twisted, prompting her to quickly get in her room and slam the door behind her. She thought she heard Angela asking her if she was okay, but wasn't sure of anything anymore. Her head began to spin as if she were about to faint. The heat in her body became unbearable, and as she tried to move toward her bed she fell forward. She caught herself just in time before her head hit the ground, but it seemed useless. The next second pain began to rack her body, every single one of her cells feeling as if they were being destroyed. She felt her eyes shutting, tears rolling down her cheeks, and the instant her eyes fully closed she lost consciousness.

* * *

Waking up had never been more painful. Even waking up after her motorbike accident hadn't been this awful. Fareeha tried to open her eyes but felt her entire body was still burning, as if she'd run a marathon during the night. When her eyelids finally rose, she had to blink multiple times, as her vision slowly adjusted to the scene in front of her. First, something which she was sure of, she was standing up, though her feet weren't really supporting her, because her legs felt like jelly. It was dark, with a bright light coming from the left, but she couldn't really look there, because it hurt her eyes.

Finally, as she tried to move her hands, she heard the clicking of metal. It took her a good five minutes to understand that the metal sound came from chains, and those chains were holding her up. When she began to struggle to untie herself, a soft voice compelled her to stop.

"Sshh, Fareeha, it's okay. You're okay."

She looked in front of her, only to find her friends staring at her. Angela was trying to reassure her, but she was still visibly quite afraid. So was Lena, who also seemed to be impressed with the complex set of chains holding her. Sombra was sitting against the other wall, blood seeping out of the wounds not yet bandaged.

"What happened?" Fareeha managed to ask. Her throat felt like sandpaper.

Sombra stood up, still holding a bloody towel on her right arm.

"The curse took its effect on you."

Fareeha growled. Of course it had.

"Did I... What happened?"

The three girls exchanged a glance before Angela explained.

"After you returned to your bedroom I was afraid you had fainted, so I opened the door and you were turning into this..."

"Technically it's a werewolf, but I would assume were-jackal should be more accurate," Sombra explained.

Angela nodded.

"So I called for help and Sombra told Lena and me to hide in the bathroom."

Lena continued:

"So we waited there until Sombra told us it was okay to come out, and then we helped her carry you into her sex dungeon."

Sombra hit Lena's rib with her elbow so violently that Lena almost fell to the ground.

"You were lucky I managed to knock you out. You should have listened to your father."

Fareeha frowned.

"You know my father?"

"He came to see me this afternoon. Told me about the curse. So I set those chains up, just in case."

Fareeha tried to move her hand once again. The chains were heavy, so much so that Fareeha could barely raise them

"Well, thank you Sombra. I didn't know this cruse thing was so serious."

"Curses are always serious."

Fareeha nodded, and a strange silent settled for a few seconds, during which neither of the girls knew what to say. Finally, as Fareeha tried to move again, she decided it may be time to be untied.

"So hum... Now that I'm human again, can you free me?"

"Not yet. First you need to make a choice."

Sombra took off the bloodied cloth from her arm, revealing a long claw mark which continued to bleed out. Angela quickly took another look at it, while Fareeha couldn't help but avert her eyes.

"It's going to need some stitches."

"Don't worry, I'll take care of it. You should get some rest. You too, Lena, before you say something stupid again."

The short Brit huffed.

"Yeah, whatever, I'll see ya' in the mornin'!"

She exited the garage. Angela hesitated, glancing first at Fareeha, then at Sombra, before she decided to follow Lena out. Once the door had closed behind Angela, Sombra went over to her desk to pick up her chair and make it roll until it was in front of Fareeha. She then opened one of her cupboards, and pick up a small box with three drawers. She sat in front of Fareeha and opened the first drawer, containing a needle and some purple tread.

"I tried not to harm you too much, but you should regenerate quickly anyway. I'm pretty sure your calves are already almost healed."

Fareeha tried to move her legs, but the heavy chains kept her from checking whether her calves had really been slashed.

"Cursed beasts are a nightmare to fight, especially when they're friends. So I hope I won't have to stop you from mauling Angela to death again."

Fareeha almost strangled herself gulping down. She chocked on her own spit, while Sombra ignored her, and nimbly began to pass the thread through her bloodied skin like it was nothing.

Once Fareeha was finally done chocking, she asked:

"You can help me, right?"

"I can help you control it, yes, but not undo the curse."

"So help me control it then."

Sombra smirked but didn't reply until she was done sewing her arm back to normal. She bit off the rest of the string and watched as the purple thread quickly turned red.

"You need a mark. The closer to your brain the better. I'll use this to draw it on you. It's going to hurt a lot, but after that, you'll be able to control it. Stay in control when you transform, even transform whenever you want."

Sombra took a strange black charcoal stick from the second drawer of the box. Fareeha nodded. She finally understood her mother's tattoo and realized it had never been one to begin with.

"Do you know the eye of Horus?" she asked.

Sombra nodded.

"Can you do it? Under my right eye?"

Sombra smirked. She found an old dirty shirt in the laundry basket next to the washing machine and placed it between Fareeha's teeth.

"Just in case you bite off your own tongue."

Sombra then took the charcoal pencil in hand and found a small stepladder on which she could stand to be high enough to reach Fareeha's eye.

"You can scream if you want to." Was all Sombra said before placing the pencil under Fareeha's eye.

* * *

Reinhardt had been seating in the park for a while now, reading the newspaper. He liked to take his time when he was somewhere he didn't know, and he had decided to go visit a museum once he was done reading.

"Hey dad."

He lowered his newspaper and smiled. Fareeha was standing beside him, unsure whether she should sit down or not. He instantly noticed the bandage under her right eye.

"Hello Fareeha. How are you doing?"

"I'm alright. Still limping a bit, but that was to be expected when you've had both of your calves slashed."

Reinhardt grimaced at the thought. Fareeha finally decided to sit down beside her father. Silence fell between them for a few seconds, before she declared:

"Thank you for warning Sombra."

He smiled.

"Dealing with Amaris and their stubbornness is a hobby of mine."

Fareeha laughed.

"I see you have a mark now."

Fareeha self-consciously passed her hand over the edge of the bandage. Angela had rushed in the garage to see why Fareeha had been yelling like she'd been dying, and had bandaged the mark as soon as Sombra was done. It wasn't very useful, but Fareeha had found that for now, while the mark was still raw, it was better to avoid it being too exposed to fresh air.

"Sombra said it will look nice. I don't know, I haven't seen it yet."

"I'm sure it will look very nice." her father reassured her.

Fareeha crossed her arms with a smile. It had been such a long time she hadn't had a tense conversation with her father.

"How did you know Sombra?" she asked.

"Your mother gave me her father's name. Apparently he helped her a bit in the past. I didn't know he was dead. This isn't going to be a nice conversation with your mom."

"Where is she now?"

"Last I knew she was still in Egypt."

Fareeha nodded. She glanced over at her father, and his dead eye looking ahead.

"Can I ask you something?"

"Sure."

"How did you lose your eye? You never told me."

Her father smiled sheepishly.

"Well, let's just say I was attacked by a mother wolf when I tried to protect her baby from her."


	4. It's Alive!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sombra, Fareeha, and Angela go to a Halloween party.

**Chapter 4**

It's Alive!

 

Sombra was getting quite bored at this Halloween party. When there was no work to be done, no target to follow and no stupid teenager to prevent from being eaten, parties were quite dull. She would have left a while ago if not for Hana. The freshman had become a friend since they'd saved Lena from the Spider Woman, and she'd even help her a few times, most recently to capture a bunch of gnomes who'd infiltrated a coffee shop near the campus. Nothing too glorious, but she wouldn't take an inexperienced girl to hunt vampires just yet.

They'd been standing in a corner with an empty red solo cup for a good half an hour now, Hana, as usual, talking about video games while Sombra only half-listened, her eyes navigating around the room for anything suspicious. Fareeha and Angela were there too, also standing not far from them. Lena had refused to come, as she was still very much afraid of being attacked by another Spider, so Sombra had left her dad with her, just because she knew he would wreak havoc at a student party.

Since the party was suppose to be for Halloween, everyone had come dressed up. Hana had recreated an outfit from the 50's, with a flannel, red high heels and large golden earrings. She'd had to readjust the scarf in her hair at least a dozen times since the beginning of the night because it kept falling off. Angela had recycled an old witch costume she'd been working on every Halloween since her freshman year, adding details and fixing things every time. This year she'd actually found pumpkin earrings, and she'd changed the pin holding her little white cape together. Fareeha hadn't so much as dressed up differently, but had rather asked Angela's help with makeup. They'd turn her skin gray, covering it with light purple veins and she'd put on contact which made her eyes look white, almost yellowish. Sombra, who wouldn't actually have come dressed up if Hana hadn't insisted, was wearing her hunting gear, minus some of her most impressive weapon. When some of the guys had asked if those were real knives around her belt, she'd pretended they weren't, and they were all too drunk to notice the difference.

Hana had been talking about some online game she'd recently discovered for a while now when Sombra had finally had enough. It was almost midnight, she'd been standing in someone's dining room for more than two hours, holding an empty cup she didn't drink from, her ears buzzing with loud music and equally loud conversation. She would go home, maybe find herself a small hunt for the night since she was already in gear, or maybe sleep a little, for once.

She turned to Hana, who was still talking about her game.

"- And the character roster is impressive. There's not a lot of them yet, but the developers promised they would release more as time goes on, so I'm quite excited."

"Listen, Hana, I think I'm going to go. I'm bored to death."

The younger girl looked at her somewhat saddened.

"Already? But I heard there's going to be a big surprise at midnight."

Sombra sighed. Hana had the tendency of using a technique Sombra had dubbed the 'puppy eyes', and she was becoming increasingly afraid of how well it worked on her.

"Bueno! I'll wait till midnight. But if your surprise is a goddamn firework or something I'm so out."

Hana smiled and quickly snatched Sombra's cup out of her hand.

"I'll go fill it up!"

"But I don't want another drink!" Sombra shouted as the girl ran out of her sight.

She sighed, and after another glance around the room decided to go talk to her friends. They'd been talking all night in their little corner, and Sombra had noticed almost funnily how Fareeha did everything to brush off all the guys hitting on Angela.

"Hey, what's up. I'm thinking off leaving."

Angela nodded.

"Yes, me too. I don't usually stay that long at parties."

Fareeha shrugged.

"Sure, let's go home."

Sombra crossed her arms.

"Let's just wait till midnight? Hana said there's going to be a surprise."

Angela and Fareeha exchanged a glance, but they both nodded.

"Sure, why not?"

* * *

Hana returned as quickly as she could to her friend and found her listening to Fareeha.

"Hey, guys! Here, your cup."

Sombra took it but didn't drink from it. Hana joined their little circle and asked:

"So, what were you talking about?"

Fareeha replied:

"I was telling them about a story my father would tell me every year for Halloween. It's the story of a crazy inventor who used magic to bring a monster to life, and the monster attacked a village. Apparently, it's a German legend."

Hana nodded, and Fareeha finished her tale:

"The carnage lasted for hours before the monster disappeared. No one knows exactly what became of it or where it went. And then my dad would swear he'd seen the village who'd been abandoned since, but I stopped believing it was true quite a while ago."

"Oh, you mean how you didn't believe the curse was active on you."

Fareeha glared at Sombra for her comment. Her mark was barely discernible under all the makeup, but Sombra could still make it out, and she was quite proud of her work.

As midnight ticked closer and closer, a few people began to walk around screaming:

"It's almost time for the surprise!"

Sombra sighed.

"I swear if it's a clown he's not walking unarmed from here." Sombra declared as more and more people moved to the garden.

After a while the little group decided to move outside as well, staying close to the door so they could leave at the first sight of fireworks, just like Sombra had promised. A minute before midnight, most of the people at the party were outside, the music had been cut and the lights on the patio had been turned off. Everyone was waiting, for Sombra could only assume was a firework show.

The buzzing sound of people talking was beginning to annoy her, and she was about to turn around when she suddenly felt something stir deep within her. Her heart sent adrenaline in her entire body, and by reflex, her hand reached for one of the throwing knives at her belt. The other three seemed to notice it.

"Sombra?" Hana inquired.

Sombra's eyes were scanning the crowd and the darkest spots of the garden. Without turning her head to address them, she asked:

"Fareeha, do you hear anything coming?"

Fareeha tried to focus on her ears like she'd been doing in the past few days to train her new senses. Angela looked at her with concern. She did hear something unusual. It was heavy, walking slowly toward the house. She heard metal clicking with every one of its steps, like the chains which had been holding her during the previous full moon. And a raspy breath, as if it had difficulty breathing.

"There's something coming."

"That's what I thought."

"I'll warn everyone!" Angela declared.

But before she could even take a step toward the rest of the crowd, Sombra strongly took a hold of her arm.

"Don't. They won't believe you and you'll only put yourself in danger. Take Hana and go to my car. I've left my best weapon there. Bring it back as soon as you can."

Angela exchanged a glance with Hana, and they both nodded before running out of the house. Sombra's gaze was still fixed on the wooden fence on the other side of the garden.

"And me, what do I do?" Fareeha asked.

Sombra smirked.

"Time to know if this mark really work."

"Are you serious? What if I lose control again?!"

"Let's just hope you don't, alright?"

Fareeha nodded, although still unsure about Sombra's plan.

The rest of the people there had yet to realize anything was happening. Sombra knew the instant the monster would break through the fence it would be a great panic, and they would all flee to the doors. She turned around and indicated at Fareeha that they should move somewhere more to the side. They sidled along the wall to the corner of the garden, against the garden. Finally, the monster was so close even Sombra could feel its presence, and hear the sound of its heavy steps.

"I'll attack it as soon as it appears. I'm giving you a good five minutes to transform, so you better not fail me, got it."

Fareeha nodded. Since the incident during the full moon, she hadn't turned at all. She wasn't even sure how to do it.

"And if I can't transform in under five minutes?"

"Then pray this thing isn't too big for me to handle."

* * *

It first started with a cracking sound, so loud it made everyone in the garden stop their conversation. They had all believed the firework show was about to begin, and the first rocket had been sent. There was another crack, and a third, and suddenly everyone knew something off was going on. Then suddenly, the wooden fence fell to the ground, revealing a monstrous figure on the other side. It was taller than everyone and far larger. It was a massive human, holding a metal hook in one hand. On its back, two Tesla coils crackled with electricity, illuminating the beast from behind, as if thunder was hitting right behind it. Already the hundred or so students in the garden were running back inside, as the monster let out a disgusting growl, spit falling out of its mouth.

Sombra didn't wait. She threw a knife at the thing's head, only to find her weapon rebounding on its skull. She cursed. Probably metal plated. Her attention then shifted to its large belly, which had been poorly stitched together, and still had holes in it. She assumed this would be the monster's weakness. She threw another knife at it, this time straight to the belly, and the blade dug right through it. The monster howled in pain. Its attention shifted from the mass of student screaming to Sombra. She took her dagger out of her jacket and glanced quickly at Fareeha who seemed to have either completely forgotten what she was supposed to do, or still hadn't figured out how to do it.

Sombra charged toward the monster, and it threw its hook in her direction. She barely avoided it by rolling to the side, the hoot grazing her arm and racking against her protective plating. Sombra had never been more pleased to be wearing her gear.

She threw another knife to its belly, distracting it just enough to run and slide between its massive legs. She nimbly jumped on its back, her hands founding purchase on the large batteries attached there. The electricity still crackled between the two Telsa coil, sending waves of heat on Sombra's face.

She'd expected the beast to buckle and wiggle like a worm, trying to get rid of the parasite on its back. Instead, a large hand caught Sombra's head. The huntress was surprised, and when the hand yanked her over the monster's shoulder, there was nothing she could do but let go of the batteries.

Her back hit the lawn with force, knocking the air out of her lungs. She quickly gasped, filling her lungs again, just in time to see an enormous foot quickly coming to crush her. She crossed her arm with her dagger, and the foot came pushing down on her. She replied with all her strength, pushing back as much as possible. She knew the monster was strong and heavy enough to break every single one of ribs, and crush her lungs in the process.

"Fareeha!" she called, not sure how long she would hold.

She glanced over at her friend, who was still struggling to turn. She clenched her teeth under the pressure. Her shoulders already hurt. Her only hope now was for Hana to come back with her best weapon.

Suddenly she saw someone run and jump at the monster. Sombra saw enough to know that it was Fareeha, who had decided to attack in human form, probably to distract the beast. It worked. When the monster saw her coming at full speed toward him, he released enough pressure on Sombra for her to push his leg away and roll off. The beast tottered for a second, forcing its foot back on the ground and crushing the lawn under him. The next second, as Fareeha fearlessly jumped at him, probably trying to push it, it caught her in one of its massive hand, and threw her toward the house. Sombra barely had the time to follow her trajectory, and watch her crash against the house wall, almost passing through it, before the beast was onto her again.

She tried to jump back up, but it caught her by the neck, and raised her, effectively strangling her. Sombra groaned as she felt her windpipes being crushed. This monster was way faster than she had expected. She knew at this rate she barely had a minute left, and really hoped Hana was close.

Suddenly she was thrown on the lawn, but not by the monster. It had simply let her go, and she'd fallen down. While she was confused at first, the sound of growling was enough to tell her what was happening, and she smirked. Fareeha had finally figured it out.

Sombra quickly stepped back, massaging her neck. There was nothing she could do until Hana was back, really, so she decided to watch. The monster was now in a strength duel against an enormous jackal-like beast. It was just a bit shorter than the monster, with a jet black fur. It was mostly standing on its powerful rear legs, its massive claws embedded in the monster's arms. The most impressive part of its body was definitely its shoulders, large and muscular, far more similar to that of a human, rather than a canine.

Fareeha tried to push the monster back out the fence, where it had come from, but the creature was not only heavy, but also equally powerful, and as they pushed each other neither of them really moved.

* * *

They'd been stuck in this force battle for a good two minutes by the time Angela and Hana came back. They were first shocked to find the werewolf fighting the creature, especially Angela.

"Hana, my gun?"

Their attention shifted to Sombra, sitting by the bottom of the stairs, visibly looking tired.

Hana instantly threw her her weapon, which she'd been preciously holding onto. Sombra caught it with one hand and got up. Her weapon looked just like a normal semi-automatic gun, one which she could easily use with one hand. It was, in reality, a high-pressured silver bullet gun. Sombra armed her gun, and decided to return to the fight.

Just then, the monster finally managed to throw Fareeha off him, sending her flying against another part of the house. This time she passed through completely, in a hellish ruckus. Angela rushed inside and toward where Fareeha had probably landed. Sombra took in a deep breath.

"Time for this beast to take a little nap."

She fired directly at it, still aiming for its belly. The bullets didn't pass through his skin, though, and it only seemed to aggravate the beast even more. Sombra cursed under her breath. She'd have to get close once again. She ran up to him, and once again it threw its hook at her. She avoided it, or so she thought, and tried to fire at the monster until she felt something cold circling her midsection. She was pulled toward the monster, who caught her by the neck and proceeded to strangle her once again. Sombra thought this whole mess was becoming quite annoying, and decided a good bullet in the head would calm it down. Only then did she realized that somewhere between the moment she'd been hooked and now she'd dropped her gun. She would have grunted, had she been able to.

She took her dagger from her belt and planted it in the monster's arm. It didn't phase it one bit, only making Sombra worry even more. She refused to end strangled by a mass of decayed meat.

The bang of a shot echoed around the garden, and suddenly the monster's arm slacken. Sombra quickly wiggled out of its grasp, coughing as she landed on the lawn. The monster fell backward, a still smoking bullet embedded in its forehead. Sombra looked beside her, to Hana, who was still holding the gun with both hands, somehow surprised that her intuition had been the right one. Sombra smirked.

"Right on time. Good job, conejita."

* * *

Soon enough the little group was reunited around the mass of decayed flesh that was the monster. Sombra, seating by the creature, was still massaging her neck, sure that even with her protective gear she would have an ugly mark. Fareeha was supporting herself on Angela, as all of her cuts and broken bones were quickly healing. Hana looked curiously to the monster, walking around it, and pushing its arm with the tip of her shoes.

"Is it..."

"Dead? Yes." Sombra confirmed.

"Then why isn't it turning to dust?"

"Because it's not a normal monster. Someone made it."

Sombra looked at her empty hand, closing the fingers into a fist. Then, she turned to Hana.

"Do you remember what we used to track the gnomes last week?"

"Yeah, why?"

"Help me do it again. I need to finds who created this thing."

"Can't it wait?"

Sombra slowly turned her head toward Angela, who was supporting as best as she could Fareeha, who was spacing in and out while her body healed.

"No, it can't. You should go home, take care of Fareeha. She's going to be drained when she fully wakes up."

"And you? You look like you're about to faint!" Angela defended.

Sombra smirked.

"I'm not. Don't worry about me. Worry about the guy who made this thing."

After one last worried glance, Angela dragged Fareeha through the door, and Sombra, still too tired to move, handed her dagger to Hana.

"Go on, we don't have all night."

The shorter girl first hesitated, but finally took the dagger and asked:

"Can I use my blood?"

"If you want to have a massive headache afterward, sure."

Hana looked at Sombra, still seating on the lawn and, it seemed, barely able to get up. She did look pale and tired, more than usual, which she assumed was because she'd been strangled twice. Hana first knelled beside the creature. From this close, she had noticed all the stitches and clip keeping the thing together. She decided to cut along one of those stitches, on the monster's arm. Dark blood oozed out of the cut, smelling of rotten egg and burned flesh, which made Hana want to vomit. She pursed her lips and tried to breathe as little as possible. She'd been determined to use her own blood next, but the sight of the monster's blood had made her second guess herself. Finally, Sombra, wondering what was taking so long, extended her hand.

"Come on, heels or not you can take two steps to me, can't you?"

Hana snapped out of her nauseous daze and very reluctantly cut open Sombra's palm, mixing her blood with the monster's. Sombra then took a small bag out of her pocket and handed it to Hana, who opened it and took a handful of dust. At first, she'd thought it was monster ashes, but Sombra had assured her it was fairy dust.

Instantly, the wound of Sombra's hand began to glow. It healed quickly, and Sombra finally got up.

"To my car, now."

"Where are we going?"

"The old market."

* * *

The old market was exactly what it sounded like. The old and small streets near the harbor had been turned into the old market, an outside mall with small shops selling everything, from food to clothes and strange exotic products.

Hana had driven them there, parking Sombra's car right outside the entrance. While the market was completely closed at this hour, the streets were still open, though only an idiot would wander there in the middle of the night. Which was why Sombra had instructed Hana to stay in the car. While the younger girl was displeased, she did as she was told, and decided to play on her phone while Sombra explored the lanes.

Passing the street on the edge of the market it quickly became pitch black, not that Sombra really minded. The spell was still active, and in a corner of her mind, she could see the vague figure of the monster's creator, talking animatedly to someone else. Though the locating spell wasn't a good spying spell, as the sounds were cut and distorted, she did understand that they were talking about the monster.

Sombra slowly but surely made her way through the labyrinth-like streets, until she reached the corner of a street brightly lit by what was on the other side. She approached carefully, and stopped before the corner, her back to the wall. There, she could finally understand what the inventor and the other person were saying:

"But... but if ya' give me just another stone... I'll fix it, I swear!"

"Too late."

The first voice, Sombra assumed, belonged to the inventor. It was high pitched, with a strange accent, but still that of a man. The second, however, Sombra couldn't place it. She couldn't tell whether it belonged to a man or a woman, it wasn't low but it wasn't high either. She knew they had manipulated their voice, and decided this person was far more important than the inventor.

"No! No please! I'm beggin' ya'! It's the work of me life!"

"A stone isn't free, and I believe it is time that you pay."

"No! No!"

The inventor's pleads turned to screams quickly, and Sombra grimaced. The spell had dispelled, leaving only a pounding headache in her head. There had gone her target, probably killed or worse by the other person. Sombra was about to wait, and hoped the other would pass her by so she could jump them, but suddenly they said:

"You can come out, you know. I don't bite, unless you bite first, of course."

Sombra took her dagger out of her pocket. Her gun was on her belt, but she knew it was a last resort weapon, and she wasn't about to wail it around against an unknown threat.

She stepped around the corner, only to found herself face to face with a shadow. It wasn't a person, more of a projection, and Sombra knew the real person behind hadn't bothered to come see the inventor.

"Who are you?"

"I've had a few names in my short life. Most call me The Witch. Not my favorite, of course, but I'm keeping that one to myself. Just like you."

Sombra felt a shiver run down her spine. She feared what the Witch might be implying.

"So tell me, Witch, where is the inventor?"

"This idiot? Well, I suppose he is at your feet."

Sombra looked down. In the supernatural light illuminating the street, she saw a heap of dust.

"He was your creation."

"Yes. You know a lot about creations, don't you?"

"Why?" Sombra asked, ignoring the Witch's comment.

"Can't a girl just have some fun?"

"What now?"

"Now I'll let you go, I suppose. You've been a good hunter, cleaning up the city. I'll keep you around, for now anyway."

On those words, the projection disappeared, taking the light away with her, and leaving Sombra in the dark.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! I wanted to thank the Guest who left a comment, I really appreciated it! I'll see you guys tomorrow for another chapter!


	5. A Bloody Mess

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hana is worried about Sombra, and Fareeha calls an old friend for help.

**Chapter 5**

A Bloody Mess

 

When the door rang this Saturday afternoon, Angela wasn't really expecting to find Hana on the other side of the door. Hana almost never came here, except when she was with Sombra. Plus, their usual meeting place before going for a hunt was closer to the campus.

"Hana, hello. Please, come in."

"Thanks."

Angela was instantly struck by how disheartened the freshman looked. The door was barely closed that she asked:

"Is Sombra here?"

Angela shook her head and smiled apologetically.

"No, I'm sorry. She hasn't been here much this week."

Hana looked behind her, to the closed garage door. Angela felt the pain in Hana's eyes, and declared with a compassionate smile:

"You can try and wait for her, if you want."

Hana wasn't really sure what to do. She knew waiting was pointless, but then again she had nothing better to do. With a sigh, she thanked Angela and took a seat on the couch.

"Do you want to drink something?"

"No thank you."

Angela went to the kitchen anyway and checked the water in the kettle. She filled it up again and started it. When she returned to the living room she felt pain stir her heart at the sight of Hana. She was still wearing her coat, as if she'd been seating in a freezer, and the sadness in her eyes almost made Angela want to cry for her. Hana's gaze went from the garage door to the front door and back. Angela sat beside her, and the motion almost made Hana look at her.

"Hana?"

The soothing voice of the blond was just what Hana needed to snap out of her trance. Her sad dark eyes looked at Angela who smiled at her with understanding.

"Are you worried for Sombra? I think if anyone here can take care of herself, it's her."

Hana shook her head.

"No, it's not that. She's been acting strange since the Halloween party. She doesn't call me anymore, even for the simple stuff, and when I try to talk to her it's like she's avoiding me, you know?"

Angela frowned. Had Sombra acted strangely lately? Usually, she didn't really pay much attention to her. Sombra did what Sombra wanted, after all. Yes, she had noticed that Sombra was more often away, but that was pretty much it.

"I'm sure its nothing. Maybe a dangerous mission she doesn't want you to be caught in the middle of? If she doesn't come back while you wait, I'll ask her when she comes home, alright?"

"You can try."

* * *

Angela had left Hana on the coach, after leaving her a tea supposed to calm the nerves which the younger girl hadn't touched yet. She'd quickly gone to knock on Fareeha's door.

The taller girl had been doing her homework when Angela had knocked on her door. She opened quickly and Angela pointed down the hall, to Hana still seating on the couch.

"Why's Hana here?" Fareeha whispered.

"She's worried for Sombra. She said she's been acting strange lately. I don't know. Do you think she's been acting strange?"

Fareeha thought about the last few weeks. Strange wouldn't be the right term. Away would be a more correct. Fareeha hadn't seen her much in the last couple of weeks, but every time she did, she looked tired, and about to collapse on her bed. Then she began to wonder why Sombra would be avoiding Hana, and she couldn't help but blush a bit.

"Maybe..." she whispered. "Sombra's in love with Hana, and doesn't know how to tell her."

"My daughter's a freak, not an idiot."

Both girls jumped in fright as the ghost of Gabriel appeared in the hallway, right beside the two of them. He didn't look ready to laugh about it like usual, instead, he looked concern, much like Hana.

"Gabriel? I thought Sombra was taking you with her when she went on missions."

"Well obviously, she stopped taking me. Two weeks ago, actually. After her encounter with the Witch, she began to look for another lead. I guess she found it. She doesn't want to tell me, but I think it has something to do with vampires."

"Vampires?"

"She has bitting marks on her neck."

Fareeha frowned.

"Wait, but shouldn't that turn her into a vampire?"

"Nah, sharing your blood with one would make you a vampire. As long as she doesn't bite whoever's been bitting her, she's fine. The real question is, why has she let herself being bitten?"

Both girls began to think. Angela was about to suggest it may have been an accident, but this was Sombra they were talking about. An accident was only an opportunity to the Latina.

"Maybe I should call Jesse." Fareeha declared.

"You can try, but if you make him move his ass for nothing, you'll regret it. He may be happy to see you, but they won't be happy to see each other."

"Let's wait until she comes back," Angela suggested. "Maybe we can talk about it with her."

"Good luck, then." Gabriel declared before disappearing.

* * *

Hana had stayed on their couch for a better part of the afternoon. She'd jumped to her feet when the door had opened, but it had only been Lena coming back from the supermarket.

Sombra herself only returned the next morning, while all three girls were seating around the table taking their breakfast. The sun was already fully peaking over the horizon, illuminating the dining room intensely when the front door opened. Sombra walked in, her hair a mess and as usual visibly tired, her eyes hidden behind sunglasses.

"Sombra, good to see you." Angela declared as she lowered her coffee mug.

Sombra only groaned and walked straight to the garage. Only Angela wasn't about to let her slip away.

"Hana passed yesterday, looking for you. In fact, she spent most of the afternoon waiting on the couch."

Sombra sighed. She instantly knew what was going on.

"Then why didn't you make her leave?"

"Because she's your friend, and she wanted to see you. Why have you been avoiding her?"

"Did it ever occur to you that the things I do are a bit too dangerous for a small human?"

Angela crossed her arms.

"Then call her and tell her so. She looks miserable!"

Sombra turned back to the garage door and grunted out:

"Don't worry about me, everything's going according to plan."

She closed the door behind her without even bothering to turn the garage light on. Angela let out an annoyed sigh. Fareeha had been observing Sombra this whole time and seemed just as frustrated as the blond. Lena had only watched the entire interaction with confusion. Suddenly they heard a few shouting in Spanish, and the garage door opened once again, only for Gabe's woolen hat to fly out of the room, and land on the ground beside the table. Just as the garage door was yanked shut again, Gabe appeared on one of the empty chairs, quite unhappy.

"Vampire marks on her neck, sunglasses to hide her eyes, and irritable – but that she has always been when she's tired... Call Jesse. I think Sombra's been bewitched by a vampire."

* * *

Sombra had already left the house for a few hours when Jesse finally showed up. Fareeha had called him straight after breakfast, and while he'd assured he would come as quickly as he could, no one was expecting him anymore by the end of the day, and all three girls had gone to sleep.

Fareeha was sleeping peacefully, dreaming about the coming snow, when the sound the lock turning had awoken her instantly. With time she'd discover that the above average abilities her curse gave her never really went away, especially when she was asleep. She was already very alert and ready for action. As the door creaked open, she silently jumped out of bed and opened her own door. There was a metal clicking accompanying every step the intruder took, allowing Fareeha to easily identify where they were. She sneaked out of her room and sidled along the wall, ready to knock the heck out of the intruder. When she rounded the corner to the living room, she could even hear their slow, almost silent breathing. With the awful sound of bones cracking, she turned her hand into a set of sharp claws, and with the swiftness of the wind, she placed her claws under the intruder's jaw. There was another metal clicking, different, but unmistakably that of a weapon, and its hammer being pulled back.

"Fareeha?"

Even through the darkness, the dark-haired woman could recognize her old friend. Although he was scruffier looking than she remembered, there was only one person to wear such a stupid cowboy hat.

"Jesse, why are you sneaking in our house?" she whispered, as to not wake up the others.

"I was about to knock but then I smelled there was someone cursed inside, so I wanted to make sure it wasn't a vampire."

"No, it's not," Fareeha said as she retracted her claws with a grimace. It was always just as painful as it sounded.

Jesse pushed the hammer back and put his gun in its holster.

"Sombra's isn't here, is she?"

"She left a few hours ago."

"I'd wager that much. Her vampire lord must have woken up. Is dad here?"

Fareeha pointed to the table in the dining room, on which they had left Gabe's hat. Jesse nodded.

"You should go change. I'll have a little talk with him, and then we can head out. Two muzzles won't be enough to find a vampire lair."

* * *

Sombra tried to clean the blood dripping down her neck, but a tongue quickly took care of it. She felt like a mess, tired from the blood she'd just lost and sore, like she wouldn't be able to move for the next day or so. But she knew she had to go home, or the others would once again start to get suspicious.

She tried to untangle herself from the slack grip which held her in place and managed to sit down at the edge of the large antique bed. She felt slightly light-headed but knew it would pass.

"Stay."

It wasn't an order, she knew, even though the tone of the voice felt commanding. It was the only way age-old vampires, who hadn't felt their hearts beating for centuries, knew how to communicate. A cold finger ran along her lower back.

Sombra pursed her lips. In truth, she really did wanted to stay, but once again it would raise suspicions. Her father was already unto her, and he had probably roped the others into it.

With a sigh, she rolled back into bed. She was too tired to drive home anyway. With sadness, she thought that all good things had to end.

Soon enough she found herself in the arms of her vampire lover, the strange woman she'd been sharing her nights with for the past two weeks or so. At first glance, she didn't look strange. She looked like any vampire might look like. Drop dead gorgeous, with long black hair and piercing red eyes. While she'd assured Sombra she used to be an Indian woman, centuries of being undead had turned her skin pale and cold. Not that Sombra cared.

With a shiver, Sombra sank in the vampire's embrace and wrapped her own arms around the woman's waist. She closed her eyes, and let sleep wash over her.

* * *

Fareeha drove them around town, on the account that Jesse had been driving the last couple of hour, and while he didn't show any sign of tiredness he didn't want to risk it.

"Vampires can be very easy to find, or a real pain. If Sombra found them first, I'm assuming it's the latter." Jesse explained. "They try to mask their smell so hunters can't track them."

"What do vampire smell like?"

"Rust and very cold ice."

Fareeha nodded. It did sound like the strange smell Sombra had been carrying around with her lately.

"It's not easy to miss when you're a hunter, but you should find it as well. Usually, vampire lairs are built next to a smelling place. It's what makes them both easy and hard to find. When they are lead by dumb people they settle in between a photoshop and a soap shop. Two smelling places to mask their own."

Jesse gestured with his fingers a two before he went back to his explanation:

"They are also easy to find when they settle next to a fish shop. They'll never settle next to the butcher shop, because the smell of blood would turn most of them crazy real fast."

Fareeha quickly assimilated all of the informations Jesse gave her and tried to use her small knowledge of the city to find the right place.

"How about a leather shop? There's this place in the old market making leather stuff."

Jesse seemed to consider her idea for a moment.

"The smell of leather is a bit close to that of meat but more bearable, and strong enough to mask them."

"Plus, Gabriel said she'd been searching the old market for a witch recently."

"So she could have unnerved a vampire lair with too much sneaking. Alright, partner, let's check it out!"

* * *

Sombra jolted awake to the sound of gunfire. She instantly sat up and noticed Satya was already up and dressed, walking toward the door. When another gunshot rang, Sombra knew who it was.

"Wait," she said.

Satya stopped dead in her tracks and turned around.

"You should get dressed and go. I don't know how your hunters deal with treason, but I'll make sure this one doesn't get time to see you."

Sombra shook her head. Another shot rang.

"Sleeping with a monster isn't really treason. Stay. You'll die if you step outside."

Satya frowned, and Sombra explained:

"It's my brother out there."

While Satya seemed to debate whether to go outside and help her creations or stay with her lover, Sombra picked up her glasses on the nightstand, got up and quickly dressed, picking her clothes from the stone cold floor. With a cold rhythm, gunshots continued to echo down the hallway, each and everyone just a bit closer than the last. Once Sombra was done with her belt she turned back to the vampire, who hadn't moved, still debating with herself.

She sighed and came to put a hand on Satya's shoulder.

"Let's just wait. He'll be here soon, anyway."

Finally, the vampire nodded and sat back on her bed. There was yet another gunshot.

"You promised me you wouldn't tell anyone where we were," she said to Sombra.

Sombra stood in front of her, arms crossed.

"And I kept my words. But I told you my friends were getting worried and suspicious. Too bad. I was having quite some fun." she added with a smirk.

"So, what now?"

"Now we see what my brother wants."

"How can you be so sure it is him?"

Sombra smirked as she glanced at the door.

"My brother uses a six shot revolver, meaning that his shots are rhythmical but slower than with any other type of weapon. Because its an ancient weapon, his shots are loud, meaning even if he shot someone at the front door we could hear it in here. And most importantly..."

Her explanation was cut by another shot, quite louder than the others.

"He needs to reload every six shots, just right like now."

Satya frowned.

"This doesn't seem like quite an efficient way of mass killing."

Sombra shrugged.

"He likes it. Plus, he never misses a shot."

* * *

Jesse was panting, and visibly tired by the time he made it to the farthest door in the underground den, which he assumed belonged to the head of the lair. There was dark thick blood running down his naked arms, and staining his poncho and leather gloves. He unloaded the six empty shells in his gun, then reloaded, and kicked the door open, wishing it was the right one.

He quickly found Sombra on the other side, looking quite displeased. Standing tall beside her was the vampire who had taken control of her.

"The hell are you doing here, idiota!" she shouted.

"Hum, I'm sorry, I was called because you got yourself bewitch by a vampire."

"Do I look bewitch to you, you moron!"

He looked into her eyes for a second and knew she'd once again rolled everyone in the mud.

"Then why didn't you tell dad!"

"Because I don't need to tell him everything I do!"

"Goddamn it Sombra! I just destroyed three vampire lairs tonight, I'm tired, you could show me some gratitude!"

She quirked an eyebrow.

"Three?"

"Yeah, three. Cause Fareeha couldn't point me to the right place, and it smelled like vampire everywhere."

Sombra exploded in laughter, as Satya continued to watch their exchange with confusion.

"Oh my god, you're even more of a moron than I remembered! But seriously, get out of here, take dad and go back to wherever you were, and let the professional deal with the mess."

Jesse shook his head.

"I ain't leaving until this lair is destroyed as well."

"Which is why I'm going to take care of it."

Satya, feeling this whole conversation wasn't going in her favor, quickly got a hold of Sombra's arm and her neck, pressing just enough to make the huntress feel uncomfortable. Sombra, surprised, didn't even dare to try and wriggle out of the vampire's grasp. Jesse suddenly chuckled.

"Alright, and I'm out. You deal with this, I'm waiting outside."

He turned around, doing a two-fingers salute and walked out. However, Satya's grip on Sombra didn't slacken.

"If you want to kill me, I'm warning you, I won't go down without a fight," she whispered viciously in Sombra's ear.

Sombra smirked.

"Me neither."

* * *

Jesse had been waiting outside for a good ten minutes, cleaning the vampire blood off of him and playing with his gun. When he heard steps coming closer, he put his revolver back in its holster and smirked.

"Took you long enough."

"You're one to talk."

Sombra emerged from the lair, and closed the metal grid behind her, locking the place for good.

"You're really an idiot, you know?"

"If you wanted to keep your love affair longer, you should have told dad."

Sombra shrugged.

"It's never good to delay the inevitable."

The siblings made their way toward the car, leaving behind them the entrance to the vampire lair, between a soap shop and a photoshop.

"For what it's worth, I think you made a pretty couple."

"Shut it."

As the two argued to the car, a shadow watched them go from the top of a nearby rooftop. While Jesse didn't seem to notice it, Sombra felt the shadow's presence and smirked. The shadow returned her smirk, flashing two pointed fangs under the moonlight.

"May we meet again," she said, before disappearing into the darkness.

* * *

Sombra woke up late in the afternoon, her head feeling heavy and her eyes burning. She was aware of how much she still wanted to sleep, but she knew there were better things to do. She got up, stretched and passed her hand on her neck. The bite mark was still there, slowly heal. It would leave a scar, she knew.

She got dressed quickly and opened the garage door. The sun came pouring inside, and she had to blink a few times before she finally felt ready to walk to the kitchen. She found a mug and started the coffee machine, and found a pack of cookies in one of the cupboards. She quickly took one out to munch on it.

"Well, look who's awake."

Hearing the voice of her father didn't seem like a strange thing at first, until she realized something was amiss.

"Why are you still here? Where's Jesse?"

"Well, it seems your brother used the fact that you were still asleep to leave without me. Not so stupid after all!"

Sombra sighed angrily for a good ten seconds. Then she shrugged.

"Alright, whatever. I have work to do."

She picked up her mug of coffee and held the cookies' package under her arm as she returned to her bedroom. There, she sat in front of the computer and took a few seconds to consider how much of a mess she looked in the black screen's reflection. Finally, she booted the engine, and took her phone out, to quickly make a call.

"Sombra?"

"Hi Hana, I'm sorry we didn't get to see each other so much in the last few weeks. I was dealing with a bunch of vampires, couldn't risk you getting bitten, you know? Anyway, I got this new mission I'm going to need your help with."

"Really? What is it?"

"Witch hunting."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! Sorry, I wish I could have posted this chapter sooner but I've been pretty freaking busy today! But anyway, I'll see you guys tomorrow!


	6. Cold as Ice

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Something's wrong with Angela's friend, Mei.

**Chapter 6**

Cold as Ice

 

Angela was standing in the middle of the old market. She didn't bother to wonder why she was there in the middle of the day when it had obviously been deserted. The shops were open, but there wasn't anyone attending them, or anyone wandering the alleys. Just a light fog blocking her gaze.

A laugh. Angela turned around as the light sound echoed along the walls. It belonged to a child, she somehow knew. She decided to walk forward, hoping she would come upon the exit at one point or another. Her steps echoed in the silence, and the sound seemed almost foreign to her ears. She slowed down, taking only careful steps as if the ground would crumble under her.

Finally, she heard another sound and stopped. This time, it was the sound of a child crying. She took another step, then another, and the crying became louder and louder. The fog seemed to become less dense, as she noticed the shape of someone crouching in a corner. The cries seemed to come from there.

Tentatively, she tried to approach the person, the child. She tried to call them out but didn't know what to say. She was afraid of scaring them away. Finally, she decided to touch their shoulder, and make her presence known.

Her alarm rang loudly in her ear, and Angela grumbled. Her phone had fallen off her bedside table and landed right next to her head. She groaned and blindly tried to find the device, still vibrating against her cheek. Once she found it, she shut it off and closed her eyes once again. She wondered if she could go back to her dream, and learn who that crying kid was. Unfortunately, it seemed her brain was awake enough to refuse to conjure her dream once again.

With a sigh, Angela resolved herself to get up. She sat up and stretched her arms. Now that winter was here, it was dark and cold out of her comforter, and she really didn't want to move. But as usual, she had work to do.

* * *

Once dressed, she stopped by the kitchen to get a mug of coffee. Lena was already gone, as usual starting the day with a jogging, even when it rained or snowed. Fareeha was still asleep, she knew, because she didn't have classes until the afternoon. And Sombra, well, Angela had stopped asking herself where Sombra was, as long as she came back from time to time and paid her share of the rent.

As she waited for her coffee to brew, Angela couldn't help but think back to the dream she'd had. Usually, she knew, dreams were about what was on the dreamer's mind. Why was she dreaming about a crying child in the old market? It hadn't had anything to do with her work or anything she'd done or seen recently. She decided to abandon her reflexion once her coffee was done. It was just a dream, nothing she should over-think too much.

She barely waited for her coffee to cool down before she downed it in a few gulps, and went back to preparing herself. She had a busy day today, she knew. They were very close to the end of the semester, meaning her project had to be done by then. She was on schedule, so she knew it would, but she could never be too careful.

She drove to the campus and parked in her usual spot. Walking into the old stone building was a task unto itself, as the mass of students coming and going, especially at this hour, was terrifying to a lot of people, Angela included. After a deep breath, she sank in the sea of people, and almost let herself being carried inside. Then, it was only a matter of climbing, as the lab she worked in was on the fourth floor, and the building was far too old to be retrofitted with an elevator.

She usually arrived out of breath up the stairs and took a few seconds to breathe in before pushing the heavy wooden door open. Inside, a dozen of students were working on their project, whether at their desk writing paperwork or experimenting. Angela didn't know any of them, not only because everyone was so focused on their work, but mostly because she didn't really care about them, and neither do they. That was, except for Angela's desk neighbor.

When she arrived and let her bag fall on her desk, Mei was already at work. She was working with ice, and cold particles, meaning her workplace was always covered with the smoke coming from liquid nitrogen. Angela always shivered when she spent too much time close to her only friend.

"Hey, Angela, how are you doing?" the Chinese exchange student asked.

"I'm okay, as usual. What about you?"

"Well, I am a bit afraid my project won't be done in time, but I worked late last night, and I think it should do it."

"Good for you." Angela conceded with a smile.

Angela booted her computer, then went to instantly check on her test subjects. In the back of the room were ten little cages, each containing a mouse. Angela had bought them from a breeder who bred mice for dissection and testing. She'd handpicked them herself, because they were all wounded, or had lost a leg or an eye. But ever since she'd started taking care of them, those who had been wounded had been completely healed, and the one missing an eye had been once again able to see from both. Now she only had to accomplish the impossible, and regrow one of the legs of three of the mice.

As usual, Angela spent most of her morning checking on each of the mice, making sure they were still fine and the nano-robots she had injected them had been evacuated from their bloodstream. The three still wounded – named Righty, Lefty, and Limpy – had to still be injected with more robots who were supposed to help regrow the bones and muscular tissues of the missing leg. So far it had been a failure, and every day she reworked the formula her little robots contained, hoping the next one would work. She really hoped it would work, because if it didn't, she wouldn't be able to pass to bigger animals. She'd either have to work for another semester with mice, or give up altogether and work on something else.

* * *

When midday break arrived, half of the room emptied as those who felt confident enough their experiment who be done on time went to lunch. Angela would usually skip lunch, or eat something quickly while she typed her report. Mei, however, didn't leave her workbench for a second, as if the nitrogen had frozen her in her seat. Instead, her girlfriend brought her her lunch.

Angela knew the mountain that was Zarya mostly through Fareeha. The two very athletic women had hit it off quite quickly a few years back. Zarya, however, was far taller and stronger than Fareeha. It was almost funny to see her interact with Mei as she was always very careful and delicate then.

Zarya walked into the room with confidence, a plastic bag looking ridiculously small in her hand. She quickly swept her pink hair on one side, and the weight of her steps as she walked closer to Mei was what made the small woman look up.

"Oh, Alek!"

"Hello Mei. I have your lunch."

Almost comically, the pink haired woman hunched forward to place a kiss on Mei's cheek, before carefully placing the plastic bag on the desk behind them.

"Hello, Angela!"

Angela acknowledged Zarya's greeting with a grunt and a nod, as she continued to type the results of her experiment on her computer. Zarya, used to it, focused once again on Mei who was taking off her protective gloves.

"So, can we go to the cinema tonight?"

"Maybe... I mean I'm still not on schedule, but I don't think I can take another working night."

"Good. Then I'll see you tonight."

Just as the two girls were sharing a kiss, the wooden doors opened once again, and Fareeha's head passed through, scanning quickly the room. Once she was sure her friends were inside she trotted to them, also holding a plastic bag.

"Hey, Zarya, match starts in five minutes."

"I'll be right there, do not worry."

Fareeha and Zarya were part of a group of friends who spent most of their lunch break playing basketball.

To Angela's surprise, Fareeha didn't come just to warn her friend. She stopped in front of Angela's desk and cleared her throat, forcing the blonde's gaze up. With a sheepish smile and a light blush which Angela didn't even notice, she pushed the plastic bag under her nose.

"I know you don't take a break to eat, but I don't want you fainting on your way home, so... here."

Angela could feel heat rising to her face, and tried to control her heartbeat. Her eyes fell away from Fareeha's face, to the plastic bag, and she tentatively took it. She opened it, while Fareeha nervously scratched the back of her head. Inside, she found a salad, a bottle of water and a piece of cake placed protectively in a plastic case. She guessed Fareeha must have bought them at the grocery store right next to the campus.

"Fareeha, thank you... I..."

But before she could find anything else to say, Zarya came clapping Fareeha's shoulder with a low chuckle and said:

"Time to play basketball! We will crush you this time! I have the feeling it will be today!"

Fareeha was suddenly taken away from her embarrassment, and smirked:

"Like hell you'll beat us!"

The two basketball enthusiasts left the room, and Angela watched them go, the plastic back still in her hands. As the door shut behind them she heard Mei declared besides her:

"There's nothing between you two, hum?"

Angela only glared at her friend and began to empty the bag.

* * *

The afternoon went exactly like the morning had, fast and leaving little to no time for Angela to do anything but work. She'd rethought the formula for the mice, and synthesized it. She only had to inject them before leaving. It was the hardest part of the job, she knew, not because she was afraid of needles or of doing something wrong. She knew what she was doing, and what kind of a doctor she would make if she was afraid of needles, really? But the mice moved quite a bit in her hands, and while some had gotten used to the daily needles, the three she still worked on were still quite scared. She needed the utmost focus when they were injected with the nanorobots.

With a sigh of relief, Angela placed Limpy back in its cage. She could feel the beads of sweat running down her forehead. She'd just locked the cage and was taking the needles to the biohazard trash when there was a loud crashing sound. All the heads in the room turned to Mei, who was grunting desperately. Angela threw away her material and quickly walked up to her friend. Mei was already picking up the pieces of test tubes which seemed to have broken under the cold temperatures Mei had put on them.

"Are you alright?" she inquired.

"Yeah, yeah, it's nothing, just half of my work down the drain!" Mei angrily grumbled.

"That's awful! Let me help you."

"No Angela, it's okay, really. I'll just have to work tonight, again," she added with a sigh.

"I'm done for the day, I can help you if..."

Mei stood up, a large piece of frozen glass in her gloved hand. Angela instantly noticed the anger in her eyes but understood Mei was mostly angry at herself.

"No, it's fine. There's nothing you can do anyway, it's all complicated physics and it's not your thing. I can deal with it."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes. Just go home, I'll see you tomorrow."

Angela gave one last concerned look to her friend before Mei disappeared under her workbench again. Angela walked away, fetched her things from her desk, and left the room.

* * *

Angela felt quite sorry for Mei all night, sure to find her friend dead on her feet the next morning. She was still thinking about it when she woke up the next morning, and how cold it had suddenly gotten. They were getting closer and closer to winter, Angela thought.

When she arrived at the lab, Angela was both surprised and relieved to find Mei's desk and workbench empty. Her friend had probably realized she was too tired to work and had gone home, only to oversleep. Angela was sure she would see her run through the door in an hour or so.

So Angela went on with her day, checking the mice, noting everything different she found about them. At first glance she was almost sure there was something different about their stumps, but comparative pictures told her that it was just wishful thinking, and she'd have to rework her formula, again. It was only by midday that Angela noticed Mei was still missing. She'd been so engrossed with work that she had completely forgotten about her friend.

When the double doors suddenly open she was almost sure it was Mei coming in, but it was only Fareeha, who was frowning and looked visibly concerned. She trotted to Angela and asked:

"Has Mei come to work today?"

"No, not yet. She said she had to work late last night, I'm assuming she's still fast asleep."

"She isn't. Zarya hasn't heard from her since last night, and when she came to check on her her apartment was empty."

Angela felt an uncomfortable weight fall in the pit of her stomach. She could feel her heartbeat suddenly quickening.

"Do you think..."

"I've already called Sombra, just in case, she'll be here soon she said. Zarya is also coming back to check around the campus. If we can't find anything then we'll go to the police."

"Why wait?" Angela asked, her voice slightly shaking?

"Because if its something only Sombra can deal with they'll be a hindrance more than anything," Fareeha whispered.

Angela nodded and picked up her purse.

"I'll come search with you. Let's call Lena and then we'll get going."

* * *

The two friends rushed down the stairs and onto the campus ground. Angela shivered. She'd taken her coat, but it didn't seem enough of ward off the November cold. Fareeha checked her phone.

"Sombra's on her way, and Zarya just parked. She said to meet her at the north entrance."

"Alright, I'll call Lena."

While the two of them walked quickly through the short grass and toward their meeting point, Angela took her phone out to call Lena. They all knew Lena never really bothered to check her phone or answer unless it was Angie calling her.

"Hey luv, what's up?"

"Lena, where are you?"

"Oh, I'm at this super great café right outside of campus with Emily. It's super cold outside so we thought..."

"I get it! Lena, we need your help. One of my friends disappeared and..."

But before Angela could finish explaining, a strong and cold wind hit them straight, making Angela's hair fly behind her. She shivered and tightened her coat around her.

"I'm sorry, luv, but I don't think that's going to be possible. There's like a super snow storm hitting us right now. Pretty sure it's not natural."

Angela frowned and slowed down her pace.

"A snow storm? But it's not snowing?"

"Pretty sure it is. There's like, ice covering the windows and all. Pretty sure we're locked inside until it all thaws."

Fareeha stopped walking when Angela did and shot her a confused look. Angela's expression was that of pure bewilderment.

"Lena, I know you want to stay with your friend, but there's someone who may be in danger and..."

"No, I'm not kidding Angie I swear! We're stuck in a snowstorm!"

Just as Angela was out of words on the situation, Fareeha looked up over the old buildings.

"Hum... Angela, you might want to see that..."

Angela turned around and almost dropped her phone.

Dark clouds were not covering the sky, coming in from the south as if they had sneaked on everyone. Even from this distance, it was rather obvious that snow was massively falling from the clouds. The air continued to become colder and drier with each passing gust of wind.

"Had they announced a snowstorm for today?" Angela wondered.

"I have never seen such a localized snowstorm."

After the two girls had exchanged a glance, they decided to head there.

"Lena, I'll call you back."

"Oh believe me, Angie, I ain't moving!"

* * *

When the two women arrived on the other side of the building, they were stunned to find only ice and snow. This entire side of the campus had been frozen over, from the walls and windows being covered with frost, to the light layer of hard snow crunching under their feet. Angela crossed her arms, hoping her coat would be enough to keep her warm in this storm. The wind kept pushing them everywhere, making it even hard to stand. Through the curtain of hair falling on her face, Angela could only discern with horror the frames of frozen people, caught in the storm and turned to statues. Fareeha, however, was more focused on what was in the middle of the storm, or rather who. She'd never been more glad for her heightened sense then now.

"Angela, look!"

Angela frowned at the direction Fareeha pointed her, but only saw a vague figure floating at the center of the wind currents.

"It's Mei..."

Angela's jaw dropped when she finally understood what Fareeha meant. Mei was at the center of the snowstorm, somehow, and Angela knew it had nothing to do with her friend's research. She was trying to create a controlled snowstorm, not become one.

"We need to stop her!" Fareeha yelled over the wind.

"How?"

Not sure how to proceed, Fareeha quickly took off her jacket and shoes. Angela was about to call her crazy but under the intense cold, she feared her jaw was frozen in place. Fareeha barely shivered as her bare feet touched the snow.

"Call Sombra, I'll try to get her down."

Angela only nodded and looked away. The sound alone of Fareeha's transformation was always enough to make her cringe and turn her stomach. One second her friend was there, and the next there was a massive werewolf with straight ears and a long mussel in her place. She watched as the giant wolf's dark fur quickly began to get coated with white snowflakes. The wolf gave her one last glance, then ran as best as she could to the nearest wall, and began to climb it, her claws breaking through frost and stone.

Angela pulled her phone out, her hands shaking desperately. She knew if she stayed there for more than five more minutes she would fall in hypothermia, and probably become one of those ice statues. She hoped not.

She called Sombra, who answered almost instantly.

"Sombra... Wh... where are you..." she managed to let out through her chattering teeth.

"Stuck in a snowstorm, obviously! You better tell me you know what's going on."

"It's... Mei... She's crea... ting the snow... I think..."

Sombra took only a handful of seconds to compile what she knew of Mei and the fact that the young woman had suddenly become an ice elemental.

"I'd bet possession, but I can't confirm until I've seen it myself."

"Poss... possession?"

"A magical entity taking control of someone and using them, most of the time to channel a certain power through them."

Angela could feel Sombra's brain turning even through the phone, but since she didn't add anything Angela assumed it wasn't for her to hear.

"What... do we do...?"

"I'll run as fast as I can, but if it really is possession, you just have to find someone to remind her of who she is. Usually, when the host takes control of their body again the possession is broken."

"We'll... try..."

Angela hung up and looked up. Fareeha seemed to be falling back to the ground, either when she'd try to leap to Mei or Mei had thrown her there intentionally. But it had seemed enough to attract the elemental's attention, as she was now lowering herself to the ground. Fareeha was still in wolf form thankfully, but it wouldn't last long, she knew, if the storm was only focused on her. Angela wanted to run toward them, to help Fareeha, to scream at Mei to remember who she was, but she could only shiver desperately, feeling herself freezing over, ready to fall to her knees and bundle herself in the snow, hoping to warm up at least a bit.

Suddenly someone came running past her, at such a speed Angela almost thought it was Sombra. In the hard falling snow, she could only see a large white shape running at full speed toward them. Then a growling sound, one which she almost thought belonged to Fareeha, until she remembered Fareeha almost never growled but howled.

Fareeha was about to turn back, she knew. The wind had been focused on her like a strong stream of water, pinning her to the ground, for far longer than she thought she could take it. She'd tried to get back up, but every time she'd managed to lift her chest off the ground and cross eyes with this demonic Mei, she'd been pinned back down with twice as much strength as before. She'd known something was very wrong with the shorter girl as soon as she'd seen her dead icy eyes, and their sight only reminded her that there wasn't much she could do.

Suddenly, just as she was about to let go and turn back, a giant white figure appeared between Mei and herself. While they looked almost invisible in the snow, Fareeha knew what it was. A polar bear, but twice the size of a real bear. The bear glanced at her to make sure she was okay, and Fareeha recognized those brown eyes and that cross-shaped scar. Then, the bear's attention turned back to Mei, who'd tried to push it away ever since it showed up, which hadn't seemed to bother it one bit. All Fareeha saw was the polar bear extending its arms, and Fareeha was afraid it would hurt Mei. But suddenly the wind calmed, and the snow subsided all at once. Now able to move again, Fareeha got up and turned back. Under her cold feet, the snow began to melt, and the people who'd been frozen slowly but surely managed to extract themselves from their icy shell. The clouds disappeared, and what had been a cold day suddenly felt rather warm to Angela. She'd finally stopped shivering and was now walking quickly toward her group of friends, Fareeha's jacket and shoes in hands. Beside Fareeha, neither Mei nor Zarya had moved. Zarya had turned back to normal while hugging Mei, and the short woman was still in her arms, unmoving, as if she'd forgotten how.

Finally, she pushed herself away from her girlfriend, lightly, and looked around, utterly confused.

"What happened?"

"You've been possessed."

They all turned, only to find Sombra standing there, not looking as if she'd ran almost all the way there.

"Last night, I would assume. I think I know who's behind that."

Mei frowned.

"Last night? All I remember is that I was working on my project, and suddenly I heard someone. I thought it was Angela, but it wasn't. I don't know who it was."

Mei continued to think deeply, as if she'd suddenly remembered something.

"They said they could help me finish my project in exchange for a favor. And then I don't remember..."

Sombra nodded, then glanced at Zarya, who was still holding Mei close.

"You're a Russian witch hunter, aren't you?"

Zarya nodded.

"It is a family tradition, yes."

"I may need your help sometime soon."

Zarya glanced at her as if Sombra's offer was meaningless.

"And why would I help you, hunter?"

"Because the witch who did this to Mei is still out there, and I don't think she'll stop there."

* * *

Angela was back in the foggy alley, making her way through the old market by following the crying sound of a child. She found them easily this time, still bundled in a corner. This time, she decides to clear her throat to get there attention. The child bolted and looked at her through teary eyes. While they first seemed scared, that quickly changes when Angela smiled.

"Are you alright?"

The child, she now realized, was a little girl, not even ten years old. Her blond hair was tied in a ponytail, and her blue eyes, close to gray, were still wet. She quickly cleaned her cheeks from any remnant of tears and shook her head.

"I don't know where my parents are... I think they abandoned me!"

Angela shook her head.

"Parents don't abandon their children like that. You probably lost them in the fog."

She extended a hand to the little and smiled brightly.

"Come on, I'll help you find them."

The girl smiled and quickly got hold of Angela's hand. Together, they disappeared in the fog, a smile on their faces.


	7. Love Me, Love Me Not

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lena comes home, crazy in love with her friend Emily. Sombra is too busy to take care of it, so it's up to Angela and Fareeha to figure out what's wrong with the short Brit.

**Chapter 7**

Love Me, Love Me Not

 

Sombra had been taking a break from her research when Lena went home. The Latina had been searching the Internet for a better part of the day, finally on a lead for the mission she'd assigned herself. She had decided it was time to take a break and maybe eat and drink something since she hadn't left her chair since breakfast. She was pouring herself a glass of juice when Lena pushed the door open.

"Hello everyone!"

Instantly Sombra frowned. While Lena had always been a very enthusiastic person, and there were very few things able to break her optimism, this over-enthusiasm felt very suspicious.

"Isn't life wonderful?" the Brit asked as she threw her bag on the ground and took off her coat in a single move.

"What is it this time?" Sombra asked as she closed the bottle. "Cause I'm warning you if you met another fairy I'm not spending the rest of the day helping you find her hometown. I've got better things to do."

"Oh no, it's not a fairy. Unless you count the love of my life as one, and she probably is because with her everything is magical!"

Sombra looked like she was about to say something, but she decided against. Instead, she placed the bottle back inside the fridge, picked up her plate of cookies and glass and walked around the counter to return to the garage.

"And I'm out. Angela, she's yours!" she yelled through the house.

Angela's door opened, the blond visibly looking confused. She could see Sombra returning to the garage from there, but Lena, still standing in the entrance hall as she took off her shoes, was out of her sight.

"What is going on?" Angela yelled down the hall.

"Lena's been bewitched, do something about it." Sombra declared before shutting the door to the garage.

Angela shouted back:

"What do you want me to do about it?!"

When her question stayed unanswered, Angela finally walked out of her room, groaning about how it wasn't her job to take care of things magical. Soon enough she found Lena sitting on the couch, staring at her phone with hope-filled eyes.

"Hey Lena, how was your day?" Angela asked.

"It was amazing! My soulmate finally confessed her love for me!"

Angela frowned. Lena was acting strangely for sure.

"Your soulmate?"

"Emily! She came to me today and said she loved me and wanted to be with me forever and ever!"

"Forever?"

Lena's phone buzzed, and Angela's question was lost to her. Instead she smiled even more blissfully and quickly began to type away on her phone, ignoring the blond completely. Once she was done, she continued to stare at her phone as if a text would arrive any second. When she finally noticed Angela was still there, she smiled at her dumbly:

"Oh Angela, isn't life wonderful?"

Angela only nodded and walked away.

* * *

The blond had almost managed to forget about Lena's suddenly love induced stupidity for the rest of the day until Fareeha came knocking at her door. The taller girl passed her head through, finding Angela doing her homework at her desk.

"Is Lena alright?"

"You tell me. She's been on cloud nine since she came home. I'm pretty sure Emily and she are dating now. It'll probably pass."

Fareeha looked back to Lena, who was still sitting on the couch waiting for a reply to her last text to Emily. She didn't dare say how she really wished it would pass.

When it came time to prepare dinner, Fareeha found herself glancing at her friend every now and then, making sure she really was okay. She did look alright, if not a bit silly. She still hadn't moved from the couch, and Fareeha began to wonder how her phone still had power. But suddenly, just as Angela had arrived to set the table, Lena stood up and ran to the door, screaming:

"I'm going out with Emily, I'll be home late, see ya'!"

She'd jump in her shoes, put her jacket on with lightning speed and rushed outside, shutting the door behind her.

Both of her friends watched her go with confusion. Almost as soon as the door had closed, Sombra walked out, carrying an empty plate and glass.

"Where's the love zombie?"

"She went out." Angela declared as she finally began to set the table.

"Good."

"Why did you say she was bewitched, earlier?" Angela asked.

"Because she is. You'll see. It won't pass. I'd bet you her new GF's got her under a spell of some kind. Maybe a love potion, but those are hard to come by. Voodoo magic maybe? Anyway, it won't pass, and I will not take the time to fix that shit."

Angela crossed her arms.

"Why?"

"Because I can't spend my time fixing the situations you idiots always get yourself stuck into. I need to work. Hunting for clients is what is paying the bills, not for you. Also, I'm on a big deal right now."

"Really?" Fareeha asked, interested.

"Yeah. In case you haven't noticed a few girls have been disappearing recently. I've got a few leads, Hana and I are going to investigate later tonight. Unless it's a virgin sacrifice, in which case it's pretty much too late, I've got quite a few lives to save, so you'll have to deal with Lena's case."

Suddenly, Gabe's shape slowly appeared on the couch, and he asked:

"Is Lena gone?"

"Yeah, you're good." Sombra declared.

He sighed and appeared completely.

"Man, she's freaking me out with this whole soulmate thing..."

* * *

Just like Sombra had predicted, Lena's ever-present happiness didn't dissipate with time, and barely two days after its beginning, it was already annoying both Angela and Fareeha greatly. Thankfully Lena wasn't home often, spending most of her time with Emily, which placed the redhead on the top of their suspect list.

Finally, when Lena came home the third day screaming how life was wonderful, Angela and Fareeha decided to take action. Angela managed to get a hold of Emily and ask her if they could talk, inviting her over after school, while Lena was still in class.

Fareeha had purposefully skipped class just to be home when Emily came by. Angela had prepared this whole scenario for them. They were supposed to be two friends concerned about their other friend – which they were, Fareeha noted – and the end-goal to this conversation was for them to know what Emily had done to Lena, and reverse it if possible. And hopefully it would be reversible.

When the redhead arrived at their home, the two of them had been seating on the couch, waiting nervously for the redhead. Angela had tried to envision as many scenarios as possible. In the worst case, of course, Fareeha would have to transform, and probably wreck a part of the living room. They both hoped it wouldn't come to that.

Angela went to open the door, while Fareeha went to fetch a glass of water. They had to look as inconspicuous as possible. On the other side of the door, Emily looked quite nervous as well.

"Hello Emily, please, come in!"

Angela stepped aside, giving the redhead enough space to enter before closing the door behind her, maybe just a bit too strongly to look normal.

"Please, sit down." she continued, indicating the couch.

Emily obliged, and Angela followed her quickly to the living room.

"Would you like something, a cup of tea maybe?"

"No thank you, I'm good."

Angela nodded and sat beside Emily. The redhead finally noticed Fareeha's presence when she placed her glass down on the counter, making the glass chime. She looked at her with a nervous smile.

"Hello, Fareeha."

"Oh, Hi Emily. You didn't tell me Emily was coming over." she declared, following somewhat Angela's plan.

"Sorry, I forgot. You can join us if you want, I mean, if you don't mind, Emily."

Emily quickly shook her head, visibly feeling trap.

"Of course not."

Fareeha nodded and took a seat on the armchair, her eyes on both of the other girls.

"So, what did you wanted to talk about?" the redhead asked nervously.

"Well, since Lena came home professing her undying love for you, I realized I didn't know you very much. Lena is almost a little sister for me, and I feel like I have to protect her, if I need to anyway. Don't worry, I'm not here to tell you to break up with her, just to learn a bit more about you and why Lena loves you so much."

Emily smiled sheepishly.

"Well, there isn't much to say at all, actually. I'm just me. You could have just asked Lena."

Angela smiled benevolently, Fareeha recognized it was the smile she made when everything was working the way she wanted.

"Oh, I tried, but the only thing she says about you is how you are the light of her life. She's like a broken record this day. So tell me, how did you two meet?"

Emily passed a nervous hand through her hair.

"Well, we met in track and field. We're both part of the team. Of course Lena is far better than me, but..."

She stopped not sure where her sentence was going. She pursed her lips, then added:

"So yeah, we met last year, in track and field."

Angela nodded, while Fareeha only half listened, thinking both about how the light was reflecting on the blond's hair, and how the same thing had happened when they had met, just two years ago.

"You really seem to like her." Angela agreed.

"I do... she's a very nice person. Always optimistic, and determined. She likes to help people, and think about others. This one time she spent the entire afternoon coaching me so I could make the time I needed to. She's such an amazing person."

Angela nodded and glanced quickly over at Fareeha, who had a distant look on her face, as if she'd retreated back in her mind and refused to come out. Knowing she wouldn't be able to count on her partner in crime, she focused once again on the redhead.

"Well, you must be an amazing person, too, because you're the only thing Lena speaks about now."

"Oh, no, I'm not such a great person."

Angela crossed her arms as casually as she could.

"You are too humble. Lena speaks off you with such high regards. It's like you've changed her completely. She only has eyes for you."

Emily gulped down and began rubbing her hands together, uncomfortable to no end.

"Well, maybe I should go, Lena is almost out of class and I promised her we would go eat a snack..."

But before the redhead could stand up, Fareeha leaned forward and placed a hand on her wrist, preventing her from moving. Both Emily and Angela looked at her, the former with fear in her eyes, and the latter with confusion.

"I get it, you know." Fareeha began. "You don't feel like she's ever going to look at you the way you look at her, and when she does you think it's a dream or a trick of the light. And so you stay trap in that uncertainty, never brave enough to tell her how you feel because you don't want to break your friendship and because you're afraid of being rejected."

Fareeha sighed, her gaze falling quickly on Angela before it went back to the redhead.

"But it's not a trick. Lena likes you, and nothing can change that. She spent all this time with you, to train you, to hang out with you. Did you even try to ask her out before bewitching her, or were you too scared to begin with, and didn't even try?"

Emily looked down, and gulped down, as if she was holding onto a sob. Fareeha let go of her arm, only for Angela to pass a soothing hand in her back.

"It's alright, you can tell us."

Emily broke into a sob, tears filling her eyes, threatening to spill.

"I didn't know..."

She swallowed as if it were the hardest thing she'd ever had to do.

"I didn't know how it would work, that it would turn her into this puppet! It's awful. I'm awful!"

Angela continued to rub her back while Emily cried. Fareeha leaned closer in the armchair.

"How did you get your hands on a love spell?" Angela asked.

"It's a voodoo thing. The school counselor gave it to me when I asked her how I could..."

She sobbed, as she tried to finish her sentence but found she couldn't.

"You need to break the spell." Fareeha declared. "Break the spell and tell Lena what you did. She'll probably think you were silly to begin with and forgive you."

Emily looked up, her nose and eyes reddened and wet.

"How can you be so sure?"

Fareeha smiled.

"It's Lena we're talking about. The only grudge she holds on is against spiders."

Emily chuckled through her tears and brushed them away with her sleeve.

"Alright, I'll go home and break the spell."

The duo smiled as Emily got up, determined, and went to the door to fetch her coat. Once she was ready to head out, she turned back to Fareeha and Angela. While it was obvious that she had cried, she already looked a bit better.

"Thank you."

"We should be the one thanking you." Angela declared. "I don't know how you can stand Lena when she's a lovesick puppy, but we have had just about enough."

Emily nodded.

"Still, thank you for not judging me."

Only a few minutes after Emily had headed out into the dark evening, Lena came home mopping around because the love of her life had canceled their date. She locked herself in her room, and Angela and Fareeha came to check on her every hour or so. By the time they went to sleep she was still a lamenting mess, but they both assumed the spell would be dispelled by the morning.

* * *

Lena only emerged from her room the next morning, when Fareeha and Angela were already getting breakfast ready. They both stared at the Brit, unsure of what to say. She looked tired, as if she hadn't slept, and still as deeply depressed as before. She wandered the house like a hallowed soul, which instantly lead both of her friends to believe that the spell still hadn't been broken.

"Lena, how are you feeling?" Angela finally asked.

Lena glanced at her with an absent look in her eyes, and she whined:

"Like I want to die! The love of my life has been ignoring me, and I don't know why?"

"Ignoring you?" Fareeha frowned.

"Yes! She hasn't replied to any of my texts since she canceled our date yesterday!"

Angela and Fareeha shared a worried glance. Something had happened, they both knew.

Sombra suddenly emerged from the garage, already in full gear and ready for combat, her phone in her hand.

"Gotta go, another girl went missing but they have video evidence!" she let out quickly.

"Wait, Sombra!"

The Latina reluctantly stopped and crossed her arms, glaring at Angela.

"I don't have time right now!"

"Could you, hum... call us, in case the girl who went missing is Emily?"

Angela's voice lowered more and more with each word she spoke, as if Lena shouldn't hear what she was about to say. The Brit was too absorbed in her sadness to pay attention to what the blond had to say anyway. Sombra's gaze went from Angela to Lena, and she finally noticed something was off.

"You still haven't broken the spell."

"That's the problem. Emily was supposed to do it, but she didn't, and she hasn't replied to Lena since then."

Sombra shrugged.

"I'll call you if it's her. Until then you better keep Lena away from anything sharp, or any ropes..."

Suddenly Lena seemed to come to life again.

"A rope! Of course!"

Before she could go anywhere though Fareeha was retraining her and leading her toward the couch.

"Why don't you take some time to relax, hum, Lena?"

Sombra watched them go to the living room and she declared:

"Alright, I have to go. You break the spell by any mean necessary!"

She bolted and rushed out the door, her phone to her ear.

"Hana, wake up! We have a new lead!"

" _What?! But I just went to sleep..._ "

* * *

Fareeha and Angela waited anxiously for Sombra's call, seating around Lena who had laid down on the couch, staring sadly at her phone and sighing every thirty seconds or so. Finally Angela's phone rang, and she almost dropped it in her hurry.

"Yes?"

" _So, you were right. Emily got kidnapped yesterday. But, good news! Hana and I are on the case, and we should find her soon, with the other girls._ "

"Okay, but what do we do about Lena?"

Angela turned to Fareeha when she felt her lightly touching her shoulder. She moved the phone away from her ear, enough to focus on the taller girl.

"Emily told us about a counselor who gave her the spell, right? Maybe she can help..."

Angeal nodded and placed the phone back to her ear.

"Sombra?"

" _Yep?_ "

"Do you know a counselor who makes spells. Voodoo spells I think?"

Sombra smirked.

" _That I do. I'll send you her infos._ "

"Alright. Good luck."

" _I don't need luck._ "

Sombra hung up and focused once again on Hana, who was seating on a bench in a secluded part of the campus.

"Alright, back to the matter at hand. Drink the damn potion!"

Sombra held out a small glass vial containing a nuclear green liquid. Hana crossed her arms.

"Why can't you do it? I'm always the bait!"

Sombra sighed.

"Do I look like a bait to you? Just drink, it tastes like chicken, I swear!"

Hana shook her head.

"Unless you'll give me a card saying I'm an official hunter I won't do it anymore. I'm here to hunt, not being hunted!"

"You know what, alright. If you drink that potion, I'll give you something. Not the title of hunter cause I can't give it and you are not ready at all, but I'll give you something nonetheless. A sign of my gratitude."

Hana huffed.

"Fine. But the next time you need a damsel in distress call someone else."

The shorter girl took the vial and jugged it.

"Oh wow, it does taste like chicken."

"See, what did I tell you!"

* * *

The ride to the campus was rather calm. Lena was laying on the backseat, still staring miserably at her phone, while Fareeha glanced at her every couple of seconds. Once they arrived both girls had to lie to Lena, by telling her that Emily was waiting for her up there. Fareeha wished they had thought about it earlier, so she didn't have to carry Lena to the car.

Lena seemed at least somewhat invigorated by the thought of the love of her life, so she climbed up the stairs with a smile on her face and a spring in her step. Fareeha and Angela followed her quickly, not willing to let her out of their sight. They stopped in front of a wooden door with a sign reading "O. Oladele, Counselor" on it. Angela knocked.

Very quickly someone came to answer the door. A tall and strong woman with a bright smile appeared on the other side.

"Hello, are you here for some counseling?"

"Hum... kind of?" Angela declared.

"Well please, come in."

She stepped aside and welcomed all three girls into her office. Fareeha forced Lena to sit down in one of the chairs while she stood behind her. Angela took the other empty sit, while the counselor sat behind her desk. At first glance, there wasn't anything out of the ordinary about this office, nothing that could betray the fact that the woman sitting in front of them was a voodoo priestess.

"So, what seems to be the problem?"

Before Angela could answer Lena leaned back to Fareeha and whispered:

"Does the woman know where Emily is?"

Fareeha sighed, and Angela declared:

"You gave something to another student a few days ago. Emily? She put our friend Lena under a love spell. She was supposed to break it but she vanished so we were wondering if there were anything you could do?"

The counselor nodded.

"I see. I can break the curse, of course. Just wait outside, leave me with her for a few minutes and I'll take care of it."

While both Angela and Fareeha were reluctant to leave Lena on her own, especially in such a state, they knew better than to go against someone with magical powers, especially someone Sombra knew personally. So they sat down outside the door on the chairs placed there and waited. They didn't hear anything coming from inside the office, but when the ten minutes mark passed Fareeha decided to go back inside. She was only stopped by the door opening on its own, and Lena walking out, already looking more like herself.

"Lena? Are you alright?" Fareeha asked tentatively.

"No. I got a pretty massive headache and I feel like my eyes are on fire! Did I get bitten by another one of those spider women?"

Both Angela and Fareeha smiled, happy to see their friend back.

"Not really. We'll explain on the way home, alright?"

The counselor followed her out of the room.

"The headache should completely wear off in a few minutes."

"Thank you. I hope we didn't bother you too much." Angela said.

The counselor smiled.

"Oh not at all. All I had to do was talk some senses into her. I'm the counselor after all. It was a very weak spell I gave that other girl."

Angela's jaw almost dropped to the floor. That was a weak spell. Fareeha seemed to notice how stunned the blond was, and took over. She held out a hand for the counselor to shake.

"Thank you again."

"No worries. Please, come back anytime! My door is always open to students in trouble."

On that the counselor returned to her office, leaving the three friends in the empty corridor.

"Can we go home, please? I feel like I'm going to collapse..." Lena whined.

"Let's go." Angela agreed.

They had barely reached the car when Angela received a text from Sombra.

Sombra : "Meet at the house now. Hana's just been kidnapped."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What, a cliffhanger? Yes, I am that kind of monster, making you wait a full day for the end of this thrilling episode! *cues evil laughter and a thunderstorm in the background*


	8. A Man's Treasure

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The gang investigates the kidnapping of girls around campus.

**Chapter 8**

A Man's Treasure

 

Sombra had been meditating on the couch when the trio got home, which surprised them all. Lena had been caught up on Emily's disappearance, and the love spell, and decided to sleep on it since she hadn't apparently slept at all the previous night. Fareeha and Angela waited on the couch for Sombra to tell them what was going on.

"I gave Hana a potion. It connects us mentally for four hours." She said slowly as if focusing her mind's eye and speaking at the same time was quite hard.

"Meaning?" Angela asked.

Sombra didn't reply, and both girls decided to wait by taking the breakfast they'd been robbed of by Lena's magic-induced condition.

They both came back to the couch with a mug of coffee in hand. Angela sipped on the boiling liquid before she asked:

"Did you find her?"

Gabe's voice echoed around the room:

"Can you shut up? She needs to focus!"

Angela huffed and directed her attention on her coffee. Fareeha wanted to turn on the TV, but wasn't sure whether it would bother Sombra or not. They waited in that awkward silent for quite a while, until Angela was done drinking her coffee and looked at the clock.

"Well, I'll go to work then. I'm already late but it doesn't matter. Call me when she's done meditating."

She stood up and went to the entrance hall to put her shoes and coat on. Fareeha hesitated between staying or also going to class, but she wanted to stay here in case either Lena or Sombra needed anything.

Angela had been gone for a handful of minutes when Sombra spoke once again:

"Hana's up. Look around."

While Fareeha first thought she was the one who should look around, she quickly realized Sombra was speaking to Hana.

"Four, five, six, seven... and you nine. Everyone's here. Good. Can I leave you to it? Alright, see you on the flip side."

Sombra opened her eyes and quickly stood up, stretching her arms over her head and making her shoulders and back pop.

"Hana is with all of the other girls in an underground cave. Just as I feared, they've been kidnapped by dragons."

"Dragons? How can a dragon kidnap a girl without anyone noticing?" Fareeha declared, astound.

"Dragons are shape-shifters. They are clever and very dangerous. Think Kitsune foxes but four times bigger and spitting fires."

Fareeha nodded.

"Right. So what do we do?"

"We call a dragon expert."

Sombra took her phone out of her pocket and quickly dialed a number.

"Jesse? I've got a dragon situation for you."

* * *

Since Jesse wouldn't arrive until the early evening, they all decided to wait. Fareeha went to her afternoon classes, while Sombra and Lena slept through most of the day. Once Angela was warned that there was a dragon on the lose, she promised she would stop by the pharmacy to buy a cream against burns on her way home. However, Fareeha knew the blond had completely forgotten that promise when she didn't come home by six, meaning she was probably still in the lab, and would probably work through most of the night.

Jesse came knocking at their door right before seven. Lena was finally fully awake and ready to get Emily back from a dragon. She almost felt like a knight, getting ready to slay a beast to save a beautiful princess. Fareeha had to remind her that she really wasn't a knight since she wouldn't be doing any of the fightings. At best, she was a squire. This hadn't been enough to break Lena's spirit. Fareeha had been nervously seating the couch, the TV playing in front of her discarded quite a while ago. She could feel in her guts that something wrong was going to happen, but she didn't know what. Sombra had been polishing her weapons and cleaning her gun after she'd mapped out every potential place for a dragon's lair to be.

Jesse arrived just as ready to kick scaled asses as the girls. He'd strapped a crossbow to his back, with a quiver attached to his belt, and a second revolver rested against his chest.

"Hi there, heard you needed a dragon expert?" he said as Lena came to open the door, leaning against the door-frame.

"Don't be so arrogant," Sombra said as she pushed him out of the way to exit the house. "I just need more people because I used my apprentice as bait."

Jesse chuckled.

"Must have brought back memories, hey?"

She glared at him.

"Don't you dare."

Lena and Fareeha followed the siblings outside, and Fareeha locked the door.

"So, is everyone ready?"

"No, we need to get Angela."

They all climbed into Jesse's car and the hunter turned on the ignition.

"So first stop, the campus."

* * *

The drive to the campus was relatively short, but with every passing yard they crossed Fareeha could feel the nervousness in the pit of her stomach grow. She felt, unconsciously at least, that she knew what would happen, but she didn't want to believe it.

Jesse parked in the almost empty parking, and instantly Fareeha noticed Angela's car, still parked there. She sighed, almost relieved. Angela hadn't left campus, she knew.

"I'll go get her," she said as she unfastened her seatbelt and opened the car door.

Fareeha quickly trotted away. She needed to know Angela was alright, that the moment she would push open the lab's door she would find her at her desk. Yet with every step, she took her anxiousness only grew.

She climbed up the stairs, but stopped midway through. She frowned, and hummed the air. After living in the same house as Angela for five months she'd picked up on her sent, and knew it by heart. And Angela had walked through there, she knew. She inhaled deeply, and almost coughed. There was something else amidst the blond's smell, and it made her sneeze. Sulfur, or cannon powder, something acrid which had left a trail in the air. She followed both smells carefully until she reached the front door. In her hurry to make sure Angela was alright she had missed the trail she'd left behind. She pushed the doors open, and Angela's smelled weakened, and the acrid smell grew stronger. She walked carefully until she found she couldn't smell Angela anymore, only sulfur. She felt her blood boiling in her entire body as if she were about to transform. She had to take a deep breath to calm herself, and fisted her hands. She walked back to the car, tense as an elastic band, just on the verge of breaking.

Jesse and Sombra had been bickering about where to go first to check for a lair while Lena had been on her phone, texting Emily to tell her they were going to save her from the dragon. They all looked up from what they were doing when Fareeha almost broke the door open, and shut it strongly behind her. She angry fastened her seatbelt, and Lena sidled away from her friend, who was radiating anger.

"Hum... where's Angela?" the Brit dared to ask.

"The dragon got to her first. Now it's time to get her back."

Jesse smirked.

"That's what I'm talking about! Onward!"

* * *

They drove restlessly and carelessly, Jesse jumping a few red lights and stop signs. Under normal conditions, Fareeha would have been angry about it, but she was too focused on trying not to turn inside the car to even notice. Angela was in danger, and she was going to save her. Meanwhile, Lena decided to keep her eyes on the road, only warily glancing at Fareeha for a few seconds.

The parked in the middle of nowhere, just outside town. There were only fields as far as the eyes could see. They all exited the car, as Jesse began to explain:

"Now, in my condition as dragon expert, I can tell you dragons like already formed caves, yes, but most of them are inaccessible from the surface. So they'll dig the entrance, preferably somewhere abandoned so no one will notice it."

He pointed to the small ruin half a mile away from them. It must have been quite a comfortable house, half a century ago. Now, it was only a ruin, with a sunken roof, broken windows and a crumbled wall. Fareeha huffed.

"I smell sulfur. It's here."

Jesse smirked at Sombra.

"See, what did I tell you!"

"Yeah, unless you've actually stumbled on another dragon lair that wasn't the one we were looking for. I seem to recall you're good at that."

They approached the house under the light of the full moon, and the beam of the flashlight they'd given to Lena. The small group passed through the broken stone wall, only to arrive in what used to a living room, with a broken down chimney and a rotten parquet floor, threatening to break under their combined weight.

"And here I thought dragons liked mountains of gold and dwarvish mines..." Lena shivered as the beam of her flashlight passed over a particularly large cobweb.

"They do like gold, only they hide it in inconspicuous places," Jesse explained. "If you want money you go to a bank, not the ruins of an old farmhouse, or the cellar of a crack-house."

They carefully passed over the broken down and rotten door, but stopped before they could go too far into the kitchen. They all stared down a giant hole which had obviously been dug up recently. Sombra took a glowstick from her belt and cracked it. It began to glow blue, and she threw it down the hole. The glowstick hit the walls of the hole multiple times before touching the ground, only small dot of light in the middle of the abyss. Jesse seemed to think longly.

"That's a sixty feet drop, almost straight down."

He seemed to think about how they could go down, while Sombra crossed her arms and sighed.

"Are you going to go fetch the rope, or do you want to jump first?"

He grimaced.

"Alright, I'll be right back."

Jesse ran back to the car, his spurs clicking against the wooden floor with every step he took. He picked up his longest rope from the trunk of the car and ran back to the house.

"How do you want to do it?" he asked.

Sombra had already figured out which beam of the roof was strong enough to hold the rope without making the rest of the house collapsing.

"This one. Tie the rope there."

Jesse, being the tallest of the group, walked carefully around the hole and tied the rope where Sombra had shown him. He then threw the rest of the rope down the hole, and looked at Sombra.

"Ladies first."

She smirked.

"Go ahead, then."

Fareeha groaned:

"We don't have time for that."

She took the rope and let herself slide down as quickly as she could without burning her hands. Sombra followed, then Lena, who placed the flashlight in her jacket pocket, and finally Jesse. Once the four of them had reached the stone bottom of the hole Lena turned the flashlight one once again.

"Alright, what now?" she asked, looking over at the dragon expert.

"As you can see we've reached a naturally formed cave. Dragons usually choose the larger side, obviously."

Jesse picked up the glowstick and threw it ahead of them. It flew through the small room, hitting a stalactite and falling to the ground. Lena followed the stick with her flashlight, and the beam only fell on more stalactites and stalagmites, all placed too close to each other to actually walk through the room.

"Well, other way it is."

They all turned around, and began to make their way through the cave.

* * *

They walked in a line, the rock formations around them not leaving enough space for them to pass more than one at a time. While Lena had the flashlight, they had agreed leaving her in front was a bad idea. So she'd been illuminating their path from behind Jesse. Behind Lena, Fareeha was fulminating, ready to jump the bloody lizard as soon as she would see one of its scales. Sombra walked last, glancing behind every few seconds, in case her idiot of a brother had been wrong once again.

While Lena had been jumping at every small sound she'd thought she'd heard, she almost tripped and fell when Jesse stopped moving completely. The beam of the light, instead of hitting some rocks on the side, had suddenly lost itself in a large room, which seemed to have been cleaned up from any kind of rocks. Very slowly, Jesse took his crossbow from behind his back, and picked up an arrow from his quiver. He armed his weapon, and scratched the head of the arrow against the closest stone, setting it on fire. He quickly fired it, and the small ball of light rushed through the room until it hit hard scales.

Lena recognized the sounds of a dragon moving almost instantly. Deep throaty sounds echoing around the walls, as if the giant lizard was just waking up. Heavy feet supporting a heavy body as the monster stood up. Scales sliding against the wet rocks of the cave. The next logical step, she knew, would be to hear the sparks of its flames, before it was too late, just like in the movies. Instead, as she fearfully raised the beam of her flashlight, she illuminated not one, but three heads, one green, and two blues. Their teeth were long and sharp, each tooth the length of Lena's hand. Long golden mustaches, and the same colored fur around their faces. Long golden horns mixing with the fur. And red, angry looking eyes.

Lena stepped back, almost falling on her butt, while the three others rushed to combat.

"Good news everyone! This is an eastern dragon, it doesn't spit fire!" Jesse yelled as he fended off against the green head, using his crossbow to block its teeth.

"What's the bad news?" Lena asked with a quivering voice.

She never received an answer, however. Both hunters were too focused on doing their jobs, while Fareeha had already turned and was assaulting one of the blue head with her claws.

Lena felt kind of useless where she stood, only lighting the show while the others fought off the dragon. Now that the shock of first coming face to face with a dragon had kind of worn off, and since she didn't seem to attract their attention, she began to feel rather bored. Not that she wasn't afraid for her friends, but she knew they would turn up okay, as usual. She continued to move her light around, wondering whether the girls were hidden behind the dragon, when she suddenly noticed something and frowned, bringing her light back behind the massive heads. It wasn't a single dragon. It was two dragons, which, in insight should have been obvious since there were a green head and two blue ones.

"Hey guys! There are two dragons."

Only Jesse seemed to be listening. He focused for a second to where Lena was pointing the light, and did notice not only that there indeed were two dragons, but that the scales on their sides were decorated with a cloud-like pattern. The green head took that time of distraction to push Jesse aside, and straight onto Sombra, who'd been having her lot of trouble with keeping her head's fangs away from her. As the siblings stumbled onto each other, Fareeha, who had climbed onto the other blue head, was thrown off and landed on the green one, planting her sharp claws through its scales.

Jesse quickly got up and screamed:

"Hanzo, is that you?"

All combat seemed to cease suddenly. The blue heads stopped to try and bite them, while Fareeha was thrown off the green one, whose attention then shifted to the blue ones.

"It's me, Jesse! Oh man, how long has it been? Eight years?"

"Jesse?"

Both blue heads spoke at once, their voices deep.

"Brother, who's this hunter?" the green one asked.

"He's... hum..."

The blue dragon seemed embarrassed. Sombra stood up and looked at the massive dragon and her brother.

"Is that your ex?" she asked.

She could have sworn Jesse was blushing, but the relative darkness prevented her from being sure. The green dragon suddenly exploded in laughter, a childish and high pitched laugh which only seemed to annoy his brother.

"This is the guy you used to date?"

There was a sudden banging sound, and the green dragon disappeared in a cloud of smoke, leaving only an old teenager in its stead, with green hair and a boyish smile.

"Oh man, this is just too good!"

"Genji, stop that!"

With another bang and twice as much smoke, the blue dragon disappeared as well, leaving behind a man about Jesse's age, with long black hair held in a bun, an undercut, a piercing passing through the bridge of his nose and a few rings along the shell of his ears. But most importantly, when he came to meet them, everyone realized that Jesse was at least a head taller than him.

Their reunion was awkward, to say the least. With so many people around them, including their own siblings, neither of them really knew what to say. Finally, Hanzo managed a:

"You look good."

To which Jesse replied:

"Yeah, you do too."

It was Fareeha, back to human and clearing her throat, who brought everyone back.

"We're here to find a few kidnapped girls, remember?"

"Oh right..." Jesse let out.

Hanzo sighed.

"I want to apologize on my brother behalf. It was his idea to kidnap them."

"I'm not kidnapping them, I'm protecting them!" Genji insisted.

Fareeha glared at him, but couldn't really add anything before the young dragon explained:

"I was not about to let these girls be attacked."

Sombra frowned.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, there was a shadow following them, so I tried to protect them."

Hanzo crossed his arms.

"As I explained to him, he could have protected them without kidnapping them."

"I'm helping others, Hanzo, what have you done lately, besides digging a hole?" Genji complained.

Hanzo sighed. Jesse explained:

"Well, anyway, as long as you didn't harm them, there shouldn't be any problem. We'll just set them free, and as long as you promise not to take any other girls it should be fine."

"Of course I didn't harm them!" Genji declared, offended. "We were having tea!" he sighed. "I should go and warn them the party is over."

The younger dragon trotted deeper into the cave, and the others followed, walking carefully as Lena moved the beam of her flashlight around the room.

"What happened?" Jesse asked. "Last I heard you were in Japan."

"We had to leave. The clan wasn't happy with Genji. It was exile or death. I just didn't want to leave him on his own. He's just a kid, you know."

Jesse nodded.

Hanzo lead them through a small tunnel to the side, and they emerged in what looked like an improvised Japanese living room. There was a kotatsu in the center, with small puffy pillows on the stone all around it. The light was given by a very impressive number of candles lit all around the room. When they arrived they found all the missing girls seated around the kotatsu, each with a teacup in front of them, Genji expressing his own sadness at seeing his new friends leaving.

"I know, I'll miss you too. But I'm sure you can come visit."

All the heads turned to the small group of rescuers. The instant Fareeha saw Angela, seating there like she'd really just been attended a tea party, a relieved smile spread on her lips. Angela also smiled, and she'd barely had the time to stand up that Fareeha was already throwing herself into her arms, hugging her as strongly as she could without hurting her.

"I was so scared I thought I'd lost you..." Fareeha murmured.

"I knew you'd come save me," Angela replied.

Jesse cleared his throat, and it was enough to bring the two girls back to reality. They quickly jerked apart, and avoided eye contact.

Hana got up and looked at Sombra with annoyance.

"You took your time! Thank god you got here though. We were about to go to bed but there aren't enough beds for everyone."

One of the other girls declared:

"I had proposed a poker to try and determine who would sleep on the ground but no one wanted to play!"

Sombra placed a hand on Hana's shoulder with a smirk on her lips.

"Good job, Hana. I promise next time if I need a bait I'll use Lena."

The Brit was about to reply that it was out of the question when Emily came to stand in front of her and nervously asked:

"Can I talk to you for a second?"

Lena nodded, and they walked away from the group. Emily was more nervous than Lena had ever seen her before, and the redhead gave one last glance to Genji, who nodded, before she began to speak:

"I'm so sorry for what I did to you in the last few days. I was scared, and it was really stupid of me, especially to let it run for so long. So I hope you can forgive me, and that we can still be friends?"

Lena smiled.

"You know, at least you didn't try to eat me. Plus I don't really remember what it was like when I was under the spell. Angela just told me I was annoying, so..." she shrugged. "But next time you have something to say, just say it."

"So we can still be friends?"

"'Course we are. I just need your help with something."

Emily, all too eager to make amend, nodded.

"Sure, anything."

"There's this very pretty girl I like. People say she bewitched me but I can't remember what it was like then. Maybe you can help me?"

Emily flushed, her cheeks and neck turning as bright red as her hair. She could feel her heart beating in her chest. She hoped she wasn't reading too much into it.

"What... what do you mean?"

"Are you free tomorrow afternoon?"

* * *

As the entire group made their way out of the hole, even the dragon brothers, Sombra couldn't help but think about that shadow Genji had said he had seen. Had someone been following them, or was it really a shadow, an apparition? She hadn't heard from the Witch since Mei's blizzard incident, and that only convinced her that she was the shadow.

A hand suddenly appeared on her shoulder, taking her out of her thoughts. She looked down at Hana, who had been waiting with her for everyone to climb out.

"So, about that thing you were supposed to give me."

"Hum, what?"

"You promised you'd give me something if I played bait. What is it?"

Sombra smirked, and placed her hand on Hana's shoulder.

"Be prepared, alright? Because it's an amazing thing that I don't give often, and I know you've wanted it for a while now..."

"Is it a knife? I bet it's a knife."

Very quickly, Sombra's hand from Hana's shoulder to her neck, and she leaned forward, bringing Hana toward her. She gave her a kiss, short but intense, leaving the shorter girl stunned for a few seconds as she pulled away. Hana blinked, while Sombra smirked and grabbed the rope, ready to climb up.

"How... what.." the younger girl let out.

"How do I know? Come on, conejita, what other reasons would there be for you to want to spend so much time with me?"

"I... How about I like the adventure!" Hana yelled after her as Sombra began to climb.

"That's not what your cheeks are saying!"


	9. Good Girl Gone Bad

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things have gone awkward between Angela and Fareeha.

**Chapter 9**

Good Girl Gone Bad

 

Angela emerged from her bedroom, and almost ducked back into it when she noticed Fareeha was in the kitchen. Ever since the whole misunderstanding with the dragons brothers, things had been awkward, to say the least, between the two of them. They'd always kind of been, at least from Angela's perspective. She knew an unrequired crush always made things more awkward then they needed to be, but for the last week or so it had been at a whole time high. Angela had mostly been confused by the desperate hug Fareeha had given her. Surely it was only the relieve of finding she, Angela, her good friend, was fine, but Angela couldn't help but read more behind it, only to shake her head and remind herself she was too subjective on the matter.

Finally deciding that she wasn't a coward, and not willing to wait until Fareeha was done with her breakfast, she strode into the kitchen, mustering as much confidence as possible.

Fareeha had been waiting for her toast to jump out of the toaster when she noticed Angela carefully sidling toward the coffee machine. She stepped away from the machine and smiled, but felt she couldn't bring the corner of her lips up without blushing as well. She still felt she shouldn't have hugged Angela, and all those things she'd told Emily while Angela was just standing right beside her...

"Hello, Fareeha," Angela said as she stood on her tiptoes to fetch a mug from the high shelf.

Fareeha tried to reply but the words got stuck in her throat, leaving her to mutter a small:

"Hi."

She quickly exited the kitchen as soon as her toasts were ready, not even glancing at the blond for fear to feel even more embarrassed than usual. Angela, however, didn't even seem to notice Fareeha's strange behavior, too caught up in her own. She knew Fareeha would notice that something was off. Her greeting hadn't been as cheerful as usual, she hadn't even bothered to do small talks.

Angela emerged from the kitchen just as Lena arrived in the dining room. She looked at both of her friends, seating as far away from each other as possible without being across from each other, and she laughed.

"Oh, I'm not taking breakfast with you two. I'll just go take a shower."

As she backtracked in the corridor, Angela and Fareeha exchanged a confused glance, before remembering how embarrassed they were and looking promptly away.

* * *

Angela was trying to start her car when Fareeha walked out the door. She didn't bother to lock behind her, seeing as Sombra was sleeping right now, and only a fool would try to break in when Sombra was there. Angela had been desperately turning the key of the ignition for what felt like five good minutes, yet her car wouldn't start at all. Despite her embarrassment, Fareeha wasn't about to let her friend in distress. She walked up to the driver's seat and knocked lightly on the window. Angela had been so much into her problem that she hadn't noticed the taller girl coming to her help, and jumped when knuckles came to rasp on her window.

"Oh Fareeha, it's you..." she said as her brain caught up with the situation.

"Your car has a problem?"

"I don't know."

"Can I look?"

Angela nodded and pulled the lever which opened the hood of her car. Fareeha quickly looked inside, but her limited knowledge on engines turned out to be useless. She closed the hood and said:

"I think your batteries' dead. I don't think we can do much right now."

Angela sighed and opened her door.

"Well, I guess I'll take the bus."

"I can drive you there." Fareeha declared before she could even think it.

She quickly looked away, averting Angela's eyes and scratching the back of her head.

"I mean... if you want to... it's just, we're going to the same place, so..."

Angela was sure she was blushing, and she replied:

"It doesn't bother you?"

"No No!"

"Well, thank you..."

Fareeha finally managed a smile and ran to fetch her motorbike out of the garage. Sombra had left a spot just large enough for her bike, trapping it between the door and a wall of cardboard boxes. She pushed the bike to the sidewalk and picked up two helmets out of the small trunk. She handed the white one to Angela, putting the blue on her own head.

"Ready?"

* * *

While Angela would never admit it, she loved riding behind Fareeha on her motorbike. While the helmet and the air passing them swiftly prevented her from seeing much, she relished in the feeling of Fareeha's hot body around her arms. She knew at one point she must have hugged her too tight, and she hoped Fareeha thought it was because she was afraid of falling off.

When they parked in front of the main building, Angela hopped off the bike, smiling so brightly Fareeha could even see it through the helmet's visor. She propped her vehicle up and climbed off. She instantly helped Angela take her helmet off, and their fingers brush. Angela quickly moved her hands as if she'd been electrocuted.

Fareeha took the helmet off the blond's head and Angela quickly straightened her hair while Fareeha wasn't looking. The taller girl took off her own helmet and Angela declared:

"Thank you Fareeha."

"Oh, it was nothing..."

Both girls stared at each other for a good minute before Angela realized that she should be going to the lab.

"I... I'll see you later..."

"Yeah..."

As Angela walked away, Fareeha couldn't help but feel stupid. She should have wished her a good day!

Just as Fareeha was about to roll her motorbike to an empty parking spot, a strong arm encircled her shoulders, preventing her from moving. Zarya chuckled strongly and shook her lightly.

"Have you finally asked her?"

"No..." Fareeha confessed, embarrassed.

"Well, what are you waiting for, my friend? You need to ask her!"

Zarya finally let go of her smaller friend, and they made their way to the parking lot, Fareeha pushing almost carelessly her bike.

"But what if she says no?" Fareeha asked.

"Believe me, she won't. How about you ask her during lunchtime? I'll come with you if you're afraid."

"Lunch time?" Fareeha's voice quivered at the thought alone.

"Come on! Are you a wolf or a mouse? I know you can do it!"

Fareeha nodded once, determined.

"You know what, you're right. It's time I do something."

Zarya clapped her on the back with a chuckle.

"Finally! She will say yes, do not worry! I know it."

* * *

Angela had been seating at her desk for less than five minutes when Mei arrived in turn. The shorter girl placed her backpack on her desk and turned to Angela with a bright smile.

"I saw you arriving with Fareeha this morning! Have you forgotten to tell me something?"

Angela's face turned red, and she glared at Mei.

"My car wouldn't turn on this morning so she drove me here. That's it."

Mei crossed her arms, her smile falling.

"Well, in this case, I'm disappointed."

"Good. Now if you'll excuse me, I have work to do."

As usual, Angela spent most of her morning testing her subjects. While the board had been happy with her results at the end of the first semester, they asked that she focused on regrowing the mice's legs before the end of the year. She'd found more three-legged mice and so far only two had died because she'd overdose them too much. She'd found regrowing bones was for more difficult then heal flesh and muscle.

By midday, she was typing the results on her computer when Zarya walked in to give Mei her lunch. She barely spared them a glance, too caught up in what her own researches. Suddenly, someone cleared their throat to get her attention, and she looked up. Fareeha was standing there, a plastic bag in hand. She'd come to deliver Angela her lunch at least once a week since December.

"Oh, Hello Fareeha."

"Sorry to bother you but can we talk? In private if possible."

Angela felt the determination in her voice and nodded. She feared for a second she'd done something wrong. She could feel her legs shaking when she stood up, and followed Fareeha in the corridor, just outside the wooden door.

Fareeha passed a hand in her hair as Angela waited, looking just as nerve-wracked as the taller girl.

"I never thought I would have to do this, but things have changed and I..."

Fareeha stopped herself when she realized that she was about to ramble. She took in a deep breath and declared:

"I like you a lot, Angela I always have, ever since that day you sat down on the lawn right next to the basketball field to work on your essay. So, hum, would you like, I don't know, to get a drink after class or something?"

Angela's brain was working so quickly that it went blank. Probably a power surge between her neurons. She remembered seating on the lawn, yes, but she wasn't working on her essay at all she'd been staring at Fareeha. And Fareeha... liked her? A lot? She had to remember to breathe before and swallow before she spoke or she would probably make a fool of herself.

"How about tonight?" she managed to let out.

Fareeha smile was so bright it rivaled with the neons on the ceiling.

"Sure, it's a date. I'll wait for you at home."

"A date."

"Yeah, I'll see you tonight."

Angela truly wanted to speak of details and plan something, only Fareeha pressed a kiss on her cheek.

"Bye Angela."

"Bye..."

Angela had no idea if Fareeha's curse gave her the ability to stop time, but that was what she felt after Fareeha kissed her. She stood in the hallway, frozen in place, with a stupid smile on her face, for what felt like an eternity, until the door beside her opened and almost hit her in the face.

"Angela?"

Mei stood in front of her and shook her lightly.

"Are you okay?"

"I don't know."

Mei let out an exasperated sigh. She took Angela's arm and dragged her back inside.

* * *

After that eventful noon, Angela spent the rest of the day working, focused on data, and models, and such, until Mei shook her out of her focus, to warn her that it was already six thirty and that she should go home to get ready for her date. Angela felt her heart beat twice as fast before missing a beat at the thought. She had a date with Fareeha tonight. Not a friendly dinner or a girl's night out, but a date. Suddenly she was almost tempted to stay in the lab and work all night. But she managed to convince herself it would be fine, and she made her way to the closest bus stop. She knew Fareeha had finished class earlier today and should probably be home by now.

While in the bus, Fareeha sent her a text. She said she'd found a nice bar for their date tonight unless Angela would prefer to go somewhere else. Angela found herself taking three good minutes to find the perfect reply.

Angela "Sure, no problem, sounds nice."

Fareeha replied quickly:

Fareeha "Cool. I'll come pick you at home by seven thirty?"

Angela frowned.

Angela "You're not home?"

Fareeha "No I had some things to do this afternoon."

Angela "Well I'll join you there, just send me the address."

Fareeha "How? Your car is still busted, remember?"

Angela pursed her lips. In truth she was so nervous she was afraid of spending more time than necessary with Fareeha.

Angela "I'll ask Sombra, don't worry."

Fareeha "Alright, well, see you later."

Angela "See you later."

After almost missing her stop, Angela made it home, her heart beating at a random rhythm, changing every few seconds. She stepped inside and rushed to her bedroom, so quickly Lena, who'd been watching TV, wasn't sure whether her blond friend was home, or a new ghost had moved in, one with a door fetish.

Angela locked her door, not sure what good it would do, and threw her bag and jacket on her desk chair. She stood still in the middle of her room and took a deep breath to calm herself. This would not do. She needed to be calm if she wanted to make this date successful. And she wanted to, right? She glanced at her phone. No new message from Fareeha, and still forty-five minutes to get ready. She moved with confidence to her full body mirror and looked at herself. There was something utterly wrong about her reflection, although she couldn't quite place it. Was it her messy ponytail, which she needed to redo before going out? Was it her size, always too small for her liking? Was it her usual blue eyes that her reflection showed blood red, like two burning coal? Yes, that had to be it. She frowned and moved closer to the mirror.

Her reflection, however, stood still, and as soon as Angela noticed it she took a few steps away from the reflective glass. She felt a ball of anxiety fall in her stomach as if she had swallowed liquid nitrogen. This was not good. Either she was going crazy or...

"Hey there, looking good!" her reflection suddenly declared, and Angela moved even farther from the mirror.

"Don't go, I'm here to help!"

She blinked a few times, utterly stupefied. Even long ungodly hours of work had never had that effect on her. Hallucinations.

"Oh come on, say something! I'm not gonna bite unless you want me to..."

"What..."

She sat on her bed, but still, her reflection didn't follow. It was her, no doubt. Same old clothes, same old face, but red burning eyes. She was still standing, and her eyes were on her. Angela averted her gaze and pressed the back of her hand on her forehead. She wasn't feverish, at least she didn't feel hot.

"Did I fall asleep in the lab?" she muttered to herself.

"Oh, you did not. You are not dreaming, you are not hallucinating. Now if you would please listen, I have other businesses to attend to."

Angela looked back at the mirror. Her reflection looked exasperated at best.

"Who are you?" she finally decided to ask.

"I'm what is commonly known as a Succubus."

"A demon?"

Angela couldn't believe it. There was a demon in her mirror. Why was there a demon in her mirror? She should probably get Sombra right now before the end of their conversation.

"Like I said, I'm here to help."

"I don't need your help..."

"That's not what I gathered. From where I'm standing, you got a date with a pretty girl, but you're going to blow it. Without my help anyway."

Angela was about to reply that it was not true when her heart constricted as if to tell her otherwise.

"Why would I want your help?"

"Like I need to answer that! Come on girl, do you know how often a demon is going to propose to help?! It's a once in a lifetime opportunity."

Angela crossed her arms, mirroring her reflection's pose. Was it really a good idea, to ask for the help of a demon? She didn't know. Sombra would. Her brain was screaming at her to fetch the Latina, but still, she didn't make any move to do so. On principal demons were supposed to be bad, but this one seemed to genuinely want to help. Cautiously she asked:

"What would you do, if I let you help me?"

"Well, I'll help you kiss the girl, for one thing."

Angela blushed uncontrollably at the thought. That was a strange end goal, to say the least.

"How?" she stammered. She tried as much as she could to not think about Fareeha kissing her, with her strong arms around her waist and...

"I'll give you what you need. Confidence. You'll be able to speak easily with her. No awkward moments. I'll even make you smooth as silk, you'll charm her in a blink. So, what do you say, friend?"

"I don't know... how would this work?"

"What do you mean how? We make a deal and I'll make you awesome."

"Yeah, but, is it a charm or something I need to wear on me, or are you going to enchant me, or is it something else?"

She really should a second opinion on this, she knew, but who could help her? There was someone who knew that kind of things, right? But who was it again? The demon seemed rather bothered by her questions.

"How about: You'll found out once we've made a deal?"

She looked back at her reflection, and those coal eyes staring back at her.

"Alright, it's a deal."

"Good. Now place your hand on the mirror please, I need to seal our deal."

Angela obeyed, but as soon as she touched the surfaced she pulled her hand away. The mirror was burning, not cool like it was supposed to be. She looked at her hand and found that it was not burned.

"And we have a deal. I'll keep in touch."

It was as if a veil had been taken away from her mirror. The demon disappeared, and only her own reflection stared back at her, both confused and anxious. She truly hoped she had not made a mistake.

The next second she felt her head spinning, and thousands of dots, like grains of sands, appeared before her eyes. She tried to hold onto her bed but fell beside it instead. There was an awful beeping sound in her ears, and she felt her stomach had been tied in a knot. She closed her eyes, more by instinct than anything. She felt tired, so tired, and even her mind, screaming her to wake up, was not enough. She passed out on her bedroom floor, sweating from discomfort and not feeling what was breaking through her skin.

* * *

Fareeha came running back home by eight, after waiting for at least half an hour in front of the bar and calling worriedly and repeatedly Angela. In the end, she'd call Jesse, who had assured her Genji hadn't begun stealing girls away again. When that hadn't been the answer she'd been waiting for, she'd rushed home as quickly as she could, and barged through the door, scaring Lena who was still in front of the TV.

"Jesus Christ Fareeha! Why do you have to break the door for?!" The Brit shouted as she tried to calm her heart.

"Is Angela here?"

"Yeah. I mean she came home quickly and locked herself up in her room, but yeah, she's here."

Fareeha spared her shorter friend only a glance, noticing instantly the air shimmering beside her, meaning she was watching TV with Gabe. She ran in the hallway under the curious gaze of her friend, and knock strongly at Angela's door.

"Angela? Please open! We don't have to go on a date if you don't want to but just open. I just want to make sure you're here, and you're fine. Angela?!"

She knocked again, but still, the blond didn't answer. She sighed, ready to give up and wait for the next day to talk to the blond, when the air vibrated beside her, indicating her that Gabe had teleported by her side.

"I don't know what she's doing in there, but it's dark."

She frowned.

"What do you mean?"

"I can feel it. You probably can too, if you focus. The air is heavy and cold. There's an evil entity inside her room."

Fareeha managed to calm herself just a second, but it was enough to confirm what Gabriel was telling her. And it was enough for Fareeha. She took a step back and kicked the door down as if it were nothing. The lock exploded in a bunch of metal pieces, taking a big chunk of the wood with it. Instantly Fareeha found Angela's form unconscious, on the ground. At first, though, she didn't think it was her. It was the right size and the right skin color. But it was ink black hair, like hers, that was attached in a familiar ponytail. It was a pair of fiery orange horns that pointed on either side of her skull. Hadn't Fareeha recognized her face she would have thought it was a completely different person.

She was about to shake her awake, but Gabriel stopped her.

"Wait! She's been possessed by a demon. As soon as she wakes up it will take possession of her, and probably teleport away."

"So what should I do?"

"Well, I would suggest Sombra, but she's on a date. So is Jesse... I guess I'll have to do, for once. Find some salt, and make a circle around her with it."

Fareeha nodded and ran to the kitchen, her combat boots clacking against the floor. She threw the cabinet door open and got a hold of a large bag of salt. She now understood why Sombra had bought such a large bag of it. She came back to Angela's room, and fortunately, the other girl hadn't move. She emptied the bag on the floor around her, taking a step back once she was done. It looked more like an elliptical shape rather than a circle, but it would have to do.

"Now what?"

"Now wake her up, but be ready to jump out of the circle. Also, don't let yourself be fooled. It isn't Angela in there, remember."

She nodded and took a careful step inside the circle. She kneeled and shook Angela lightly. She couldn't help but call her name as she did so:

"Angela? Angela wake up?"

The other girl frowned, then finally opened her eyes. Fareeha was once again struck by how blue they were, and she had to force herself to let the former blond go and step away from the circle. Angela quickly regained consciousness and looked around.

"Fareeha? What is going on?"

Fareeha pursed her lips and chose to stay silent. Gabriel had warned it wasn't her, yet it sounded so much like her.

"Did I miss our date? Oh no, I'm so sorry! I don't what happened, I must have fainted... I'm so sorry, you must have been so worried when I didn't show up."

Fareeha looked down, just about to cry. Was it really a demon speaking, or was it her friend, her crush. She wanted to rush up to her, take her in her arms and tell her it was okay, as long as she was fine, that they would fix this mess together.

Gabriel frowned. This wasn't what was suppose to happen, he knew for a fact. The demon was supposed to have completely taken over Angela, for once, meaning red eyes and small, spike-like horns on her forehead, and a tail. She didn't possess any of those. Plus, the demon would have been struggling to get out of the salt circle, crying about how painful it was and begging them to let them out. But Angela wasn't.

"Fareeha... I don't know what's up, but this is Angela."

Both girls looked at the ghost.

"What do you mean?" the taller girl asked, confused.

"Well, she isn't acting like she's been possessed. I think it failed."

"What are you talking about?" Angela asked, slightly annoyed by the situation.

For only answer, she felt Fareeha's arms wrapped protectively around her, as she hugged her as strongly as she could.

"It's okay, I'll explain later."

Angela froze for a good minute before she hugged Fareeha back. Gabriel continued to stare at the two of them before he decided to leave them alone, and return to the TV. He'll have to talk about it with Sombra once she got home.

When both girls separated, Angela instantly began to ramble:

"Again, I'm so sorry I missed our date. I mean I was a bit scared but I wouldn't blow it on purpose! And I just wanted to say, I like you a lot too. I wanted you to notice so I went to watch you play basketball. I wasn't actually working on anything because I couldn't focus when you were there."

Fareeha only smiled, a passed a thumb over Angela's cheek.

"So, how about another first date, tomorrow night?" Angela suggested.

"Sure, why not. I mean, we still need to fix you up, but..."

"Fix me up, what are you..."

Angela turned around and looked at her reflection in the mirror. She was so stunned she fell back Fareeha's arms.

"What happened?! Why do I have horns?! And my hair..."

She tentatively touched the base of one of her horns. Fareeha shrugged, still smiling.

"I'm sure we can fix it. I mean I never thought I'd see you in another color than blond, but I have to say, you look beautiful either way."

Angela turned around, her blue eyes losing themselves in Fareeha's dark eyes. She knew her cheeks were flushed, but she didn't care. Where she ever found the courage to lean forward and stand on her tiptoes, she didn't know. But the next second, their lips met, delicately at first. Fareeha placed a hand on Angela's waist, the other still carefully combing through the silky hair.

Angela was sure she had died and gone to heaven, no matter what those horns on her head meant. Unless it was a sick jock and she would soon be in hell, but even then she didn't care. She could die happy, knowing she'd kiss Fareeha.

When both girls separated, Fareeha instantly noticed how everything had changed. Angela's horns were gone, and her blond hair was back to normal. She looked stunned, but before Angela could ask why, Fareeha turned her around, until they were both looking at their reflection in the mirror. While Angela was happy to see herself back to normal, she couldn't help but complain:

"True love's kiss, really? That was the answer?"

Fareeha smiled almost stupidly.

"True love?"

Angela only turned around and smiled.

"Why wouldn't it be?"

She leaned forward, and Fareeha was all too happy to reciprocate the kiss.


	10. Out of Time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lena learns the hard way that cheating is never a good idea...

**Chapter 10**

Out of Time

 

Lena knew she deserved it completely. She shouldn't have asked for a way to cheat to begin with. Especially a magical way. Well, it looked pretty scientific at first glance, but the fact that she was floating, ghost-like, out of time, and had been for what seemed to be quite a while didn't sound very scientific to her.

It was all very cold and horrible. She wanted to shiver all the time. She kept being tossed about by – probably – Time itself, and she didn't know what she would give to be back to normal, and not feel continuously seasick. She hoped the others were having a better luck than her because right now she didn't even know where – or when – she was.

Determined to wait it out, since there really wasn't much that could do, she sat down. Or at least she was pretty sure she did, wherever there was ground to sat on. This whole mess was going to give her a headache, she could already feel.

* * *

_A week ago_

Lena had received the text from a very old friend during her track and field training and only had the chance to reply after the coach had dismissed everyone, calling them slugs as often as five times during his short end-of-training speech. Lena felt particularly aimed at. She'd a few rough weeks, between her pleasant dates with Emily, and the not so pleasant times she'd been used as bate by Sombra since Hana was at the end of her rope and wouldn't do it anymore.

Lena sat down in the stands, shivering. The early spring night air was still a bit too cold, even for her boiling body. She quickly put on her sweater and fetched her phone in her pocket. Emily came to sit down beside her, downing very quickly the rest of her water bottle. Lena couldn't help but smile when she saw the text she'd received.

"Do you think the coach's right?"

Lena looked up from her phone to her girlfriend.

"I'm sorry, what?"

"About us not qualifying for nationals?"

Lena shrugged. In truth that thought terrified her. She really wanted to run for nationals, but her times had been less than stellar recently, and she felt her objective sleeping through her fingers almost physically.

"We'll have to wait to find out."

Emily put on her own jacket and asked:

"Want to drop by my place? We can order pizza."

Lena looked back at her phone. He would probably be too engrossed in work to notice that she had replied.

"Sure, why not?"

* * *

They rolled in Hana's bed, so Sombra could pin the younger girl under her. They had established quite quickly that Sombra's cot wouldn't be a very good place for a make-out session, so they usually headed back to Hana's dorm room when Sombra declared they'd worked enough. And since their investigation on the Witch hadn't moved at all in the last few weeks, they did end up in Hana's room quite often.

Sombra took just enough time to make sure she wasn't crushing the shorter girl before she crashed their lips once again. One of Hana's hand came to rest behind her head, as usual, caressing her long hair, then the very short one of her undercut. Sombra didn't really pay attention to the other hand because the way Hana's hand caressed her head sent shivers down her back. She had a hand cupping Hana's cheek, so she could support most of her weight on her arm, and the other holding delicately her waist, her thumb playing with the soft white skin under her shirt.

Sombra thought they could stay like that for quite a while and was pretty much ready for it. She smirked in the kiss when she felt Hana's hand sliding past her shirt. The fact that most of her body was covered with scars hadn't been a problem for the younger girl, who liked to trace them with her fingers. Hana suddenly moved her hand to Sombra's back, and before the Latina could stop her her fingers brushed something cold on her back. Hana frowned and they quickly separated. Sombra sat up and climbed off her girlfriend in a single motion, leaving Hana afraid she'd touched something she shouldn't have.

Sombra closed her eyes and began to take deep breathes, leaving Hana to believe the thing she'd touched had actually hurt Sombra.

"I'm so sorry I didn't know... Are you okay?"

After a final breath, Sombra nodded.

"It's alright... just..."

Sombra sighed. She didn't think she'd have to explain it to anyone anymore.

"It doesn't hurt just... brings back memories."

Hana nodded, and carefully she moved closer to Sombra until she could take her in her arms.

"It's okay if you don't want to talk about it."

Sombra was not the kind of person to cry, or break, that Hana had learned as much from the months they'd spent together. But she'd never seen her so close to do so. It tore her soul in half just to see Sombra vulnerable when she looked like an unbreakable wall most of the time.

Finally, the Latina placed a hand on Hana's arm.

"Sorry I ruined the mood."

Hana smiled.

"It's alright. Do you want to watch a movie?"

Sombra shrugged.

"Sure, why not?"

* * *

When Lena emerged from Emily's dorm room, it was almost midnight. She skipped down the stairs at lightning speed, ready to call one of her friends to pick her up. She knew for a fact Sombra would still be awake. She pushed the building door open and took her phone out of her pocket. Cold air swept her hair in front of her eyes. It was only early spring, but the air was becoming warmer quickly.

As she unlocked her phone, she found that her old friend had replied, and said he was basically ready to see her anytime. With a smile, just as a joke, she texted back "Even now?", and he instantly replied with an address, of a coffee shop open twenty-four/seven and close to the campus. He had always been a thoughtful and organized guy.

She trotted to the place in question and found the windows still shining with bright yellow light, the only one in a mile radius. She instantly noticed her friend seating by the window, his nose buried in a mountain of papers. She smiled fondly, suddenly hit by how much she had missed him. She opened eagerly the door and smiled to the tired waiter by the counter. She stopped right next to the table her friend was occupying, and the sound of her boots hitting loudly the floor, then stopping completely, hadn't been enough to tear him away from his papers.

"Any time, Big guy? Really?"

At the sound of her voice he looked up, and a bright smile illuminated his face.

"Lena!"

He stood up, and suddenly, with the full measure of his size, he towered over Lena. He was tall, taller than most people, and had large, rounded shoulders, meaning he always took a lot of space. But Lena didn't mind. She was so small and thin compared to him that it was almost ridiculous. He passed a hand through his messy dark hair and pushed his squared glasses up the bridge of his nose. He extended his arms, and she jumped to hug him, unafraid to be crushed by the bear hug she received.

"Winston! I missed you!"

"Me too!"

As they separated, he sat back down in his chair, which looked too small and fragile for him, and Lena pulled the chair across from his. He quickly cleaned the table, piling the papers in one corner of his side of the table, and suddenly remembered he had ordered a coffee, which had stayed untouched since the waiter had brought it to him. He lightly pushed the cup toward Lena.

"Here, if you want it, I don't need coffee anymore."

Lena frowned. Winston had always been a weird guy, always making up weird things. But it was the thing she liked the most about him. She took the coffee gratefully and took a sip. It was lukewarm at best.

"No more coffee, really?"

"Yes! I've invented a pill which can give you energy for an entire week without sleeping, and with no side effects!" he replied excitedly.

She quirked an eyebrow, and he added:

"Well... No side effects that I could record yet..."

She smiled, and he leaned a bit closer to her.

"So, how are you? I heard you just started dating someone."

Lena blushed lightly, but couldn't be more proud when she replied:

"Yeah... Her name's Emily. We had a few mishaps at first, but we're better now. I just left her place, actually."

If Winston's skin hadn't been so dark, she swore he would have been crimson.

"Oh... I'm sorry if I interrupted you..."

"What? No, I was leaving when I saw your text, don't worry. Plus, I always have time for you, Big Guy!"

She patted his massive arm and he smiled sheepishly.

"Actually I should probably go to sleep right now. I have a big competition soon, and I just can't get back into the rhythm, you know?"

She sighed.

"Do you reckon I could use one of your pills, just for this week?"

With a smart smile, he pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose.

"I think I have better."

* * *

Lena came home the next morning, both exhausted from sleep deprivation and excited. She instantly went to cooking, trying her best to remember the precautions Winston had given her before dropping her home. Everyone seemed to still be asleep. She assumed Sombra wasn't even there, or her empty mug would have been in the sink, waiting to be cleaned up. She prepared herself a cup of strong tea, and placed a few cookies on the plate, waiting for everyone to wake up to show them her cool new powers. She sat on the couch and waited for the water to brew.

Most of everything she'd done since she'd passed the threshold had taken her less than a minute to complete.

"It's awesome" she couldn't help but whisper.

"What is?"

She almost jumped out of her skin when Gabriel appeared beside her, seating on the couch.

"Oh, you know, calm and quiet..."

She smiled, though the ghost stayed unconvinced. She wondered what Gabe would think of her new powers. Would he marvel and try to understand how they worked, or would he be wary, and try to convince her that it wasn't a good thing? It would take quite a bit of convincing for her to stop believing that this wasn't the best thing that had ever happened to her.

She tried to move carefully, to move at normal speed as much as she could. She took a biscuit slowly to her mouth, then bit it, and chew so slowly Gabe knew instantly something was off.

"What did you do?"

"Nothing? Why would I have done anything?"

"Because you look suspicious. For the last time, leave the fairy people alone!"

She almost threw her cookie at the ghost, outraged.

"Come on! It happened once! Once! And they weren't even real fairies, they were just annoying little elves!"

The kettle began to whistle, and both Gabe and Lena stared at it for a few seconds, before Gabe turned to the Brit.

"Aren't you going to do something about it?"

"Hum... yeah! Of course!"

She stood up, placing carefully the plate on the table beside her, and took a first step toward the kitchen. This was when she knew something wrong was going on. She didn't just walk quickly to the kitchen, she teleported to it as if she'd been by the couch one second, and in front of the stone the next. It all felt wobbly and fuzzy, as if she were about to faint. She fell sick suddenly. Her stomach had been turned upside down. Her brain hurt furiously for a few seconds, and started turning. She had to hold herself on the counter to not fall head first on the floor.

On the couch, Gabe stared at her, stunned. He had never seen anyone teleporting like this, and worst, he didn't know if it really was what had happened, or if his own brain was becoming fry after being only an ethereal for so long.

"You... I... What did you do?"

"Nothing, I swear! I'm fine. I'll just make my tea and go to my room!"

And she did, only it only took her twenty seconds instead of five minutes, and Gabriel felt even more confused than before.

* * *

The door had barely closed behind her that she instantly called Winston. He picked up at the last second, probably so focused on one work or another that he hadn't even noticed it was ringing.

"Ah Lena, how are you?"

"I don't know? Am I suppose to teleport?"

"Teleport, ah! Hum... Not that I know of."

"So it's not normal?"

"It is a side effect I hadn't thought about, but maybe it is normal."

"Well, I don't like it!"

"Don't worry. It is probably just temporary. After all your body needs to adjust. We'll look more into it when you'll come for tests, alright?"

"Okay, alright, see you then."

"Bye Lena!"

He hung up, probably back to work, while she sat down on her bed, her cup of tea still in hand. She began to sip it and didn't put it down until it was empty. Then she laid down on her bed, and did not intend to move until she felt better.

Unfortunately, her rest was quickly broken Angela knocking repeatedly on her door.

"Lena, get up! You're going to be late for classes!"

Lena rolled over and grunted unhappily.

"Do I have to go?"

"Come on, you'll never get anywhere if you skip classes."

She rolled over again, her head in the pillow to muffle her answer to the blond:

"Yes, mom."

* * *

Lena's day was strange, to say the least. No matter how much she tried to slow down and do things at a human level of speed, she always managed to mess it up. Going from classes to classes only took a handful of seconds, not that she would complain, but she left a strange glow behind her as she moved. She imagined it had to be the blur of her movements, but even then she wasn't sure. She finally gave up by midday, after gulping down her sandwich in record time. She would go and see Winston tonight and ask him to fix this, take it off completely if he could.

But by the middle of the afternoon, she wasn't even sure she would make it to Winston's. She began teleporting more and more, leaving people stunned in her wake as she had to refrain from emptying the content of her stomach on multiple occasions. She felt just about ready to faint by the time her teacher dismissed her last class of the day. She thought she must have look sickly pale. She really needed to get to Winston. She sent him a text before standing up. Her head began to spin once again, and she felt sweat rolling down her spine. She had to get out of here, now. Unfortunately, her body responded to quickly to her thought, and she teleported all the way to the door. This time, there wasn't any way to cut it. She let herself slip against the wall and sat there, scrutinized by the curious gazes of other students, until she felt once again able to walk. She wasn't sure whether it would take a lot of time or no time at all to get to her friend.

* * *

Sombra had barely put a foot inside her house that already her father was assaulting her, about how Lena could suddenly teleport and move very quickly, almost ghost-like. This, of course, instantly picked the Latina's interest. She quickly called Hana, who complained that she had classes to attend to from time to time, which Sombra dismissed with a "Do they teach you how to kill a vampire, I don't think so."

She quickly came to pick up the shorter girl in front of the campus. Hana looked annoyed, with her arms crossed and her frown, but Sombra couldn't help but find it cute.

"Climb in, conejita. We have Lena to save, again."

Hana huffed.

"Like you can't save her on your own."

"If it is what I think it is, you're going to want to be there, believe me."

Hana glanced at Sombra. She'd never heard her girlfriend use such a tone. It was strange, at best. It almost sounded like Sombra didn't want her to be there, but needed her to be there.

They drove silently, and relentlessly, Sombra barely minding the signs and red lights. When they stopped in front of an old warehouse, out of which light came out, Hana knew something was off. They had never fought any kind of monsters in warehouses or any above ground buildings. Werewolves they killed in the forest. Vampires, underground. The witch they had hunted possibly everywhere but hadn't found anything yet. What kind of a monster would hide in a warehouse?

She felt her heart sank when Sombra looked at her and placed her gun in her hands. It was the first time Sombra gave her her main weapon deliberately before a fight.

"Keep it for me. Don't give it to me unless you feel like I need it. Got it?"

"Are you sure?"

Sombra smiled, genuinely, sadly.

"I trust you."

Hana only nodded, and Sombra placed a kiss on her cheek before climbing off the car.

* * *

When Hana entered the warehouse, right behind Sombra, she was surprised to find that it wasn't abandoned. It had been rearranged to house a lab. Papers clouded the tables, sometimes covering entirely some expensive looking piece of machinery. Sombra walked passed everything with determination, and Hana followed, her heart beating faster with each step. There was something awfully wrong about the situation, she knew, but she couldn't put her finger on it.

When they finally arrived at the end of the warehouse, they instantly found Lena, laid down on what looked like an operating table. She looked pale, sweaty and tired. Behind her, by one of the many computers, stood a large man wearing a lab coat. As silently as a cat, Sombra walked up to him, sword in hand. When she'd unshed her sword, Hana didn't know. The next second the blade was against the large man's throat, and he gulped down, holding his hands up quickly.

"Take everything, I don't want any trouble..."

As the deep voice of the man echoed around the warehouse, Lena opened her eyes, shocked to see Sombra holding up a blade to Winston.

"Sombra? What are you doing?"

Sombra turned to Lena, glaring at her.

"Gabe told me you were zipping around and teleporting this morning. Is it true?"

Hana shuttered when she heard the pain in Sombra's voice. She felt her hand wrap around Sombra's gun.

"Yeah, but don't worry! Winston's going to fix it!" Lena quickly replied.

Sombra took in a deep breath which seemed to be caught in her lungs. She looked over at Hana, and the shorter girl was hit by the sorrow in the Latina's purple eyes.

"This, Hana, is what we call a creation. A human being modified by another one. And it's a hunter's duty to kill both."

A long cold shiver ran down Hana's spine. Lena suddenly jerked upright and tried to stand up.

"No, don't worry! Winston is going to fix it!"

She had barely placed a step on the ground toward her friends that she vanished completely, only to reappear on Winston's left side, sweaty and even paler than before. She held herself on the table, close to collapsing on the ground. Sombra pointed her sword at her.

"This can't be fixed. You won't become human again. It's impossible."

Winston gulped down and rose a hand before he declared:

"I may be able to create something which may fix her, but..."

He stopped talking when the blade was once again pointed towards him. Sombra clenched her teeth, raising the sword just a bit higher.

"Fixing her won't make her human again."

Before she could move, however, a gunshot rang through the building. The bullet passed through the blade, making a clear circle in the middle of it. Sombra turned around, surprised. She had almost forgotten Hana was there, and that she had her weapon. With calm and sure hands she lowered the gun.

"You need a break. You are not making any sense. Obviously he didn't mean to turn her into a creation because he didn't know what it was!"

She leaned to the side, asking Winston:

"You didn't know what a creation was, right?"

He nodded vigorously.

"See? So we are walking out of this building, and leaving him to work so he can save Lena? Understood?"

Sombra's gaze found Hana's, and the shorter girl's heart broke. Sombra sheathed her sword and walked away without even sparing a glance to Lena and Winston.

"Fix her for all I care."

* * *

Hana followed Sombra outside once she'd made sure Lena was safely back on the table. Winston assured her he could fix her, though it would take some time.

When Hana stepped out of the warehouse she was half expecting to find the car gone. But it was still there, with Sombra laying down in the trunk. Hana came to sit beside her.

"I get there are things you don't want to tell me, but maybe you should. You went so overboard I thought I would have to shoot you."

"It was the reason I gave you the gun in the first place," Sombra replied in a monotone voice.

Hana, at first stunned, pursed her lips before she decided to lie down beside her girlfriend. She thought they would stay like this for a few minutes, maybe until Sombra finally decided to do something. But instead the Latina quickly crawled to hug her, and Hana held her back.

"We'll go home, and I'll tell you everything, promise."

Hana passed her hand along Sombra's back, carefully, stopping right before the device there. Somehow, as the pieces began to add up, she thought she already knew what Sombra was about to tell her.

Lena didn't come home for a full week, spending it at Winston's when she wasn't teleporting around the room, or disappearing for hours on end. When Winston finally managed to stabilize her, it was thanks to a special harness, which he called a chrono-accelerator. It held her in place, or rather in time, but also allowed her to use her newfound powers, without wanting to vomit every time, which Lena was grateful for. Of course, Angela and Fareeha were happy to see her. Sombra, however, didn't even spare a glance, and went to her room, falling on her cot and hugging her teddy bear.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wanted to thank EllaHecate for leaving a comment! The story is almost over, just three more chapters to go (but they're awesome chapters, I promise) Anyway, I'll see you guys tomorrow!


	11. Breaking the Curse

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hana and Sombra help out one of Hana's friend who's been cursed.

**Chapter 11**

Breaking the Curse

 

Hana almost never called to tell Sombra she had a new mission for them. In fact, she had only called once before, because she'd thought she'd find a baby werewolf, which she hadn't. It had just been a puppy following her because he'd lost his owners. But this time, she seemed genuinely convinced that she'd find their next mission. Sombra, who had been at the grocery store when Hana had called, had told her to meet her home. She wasn't just about to leave a cart full of food in the middle of the supermarket just to run home. Plus, she'd given the key to Hana, and even if she forgot it, she'd taught her how to pick a lock a while ago.

Once Sombra had been done with the groceries, she'd driven home. Hana had texted her that she was waiting in the garden. Sombra parked in front of the house, sure that she would have to leave again soon, if not just to bring Hana home, and took as many plastic bags as she could. The door was unlocked, probably left like this by Hana. She stepped inside and placed all the bags on the counter. She quickly returned to get the rest, and once she was done she passed her head through the garden door. Hana was indeed there, seating on one of the old garden chairs the previous owner had left there, a cardboard box on her knees. The younger girl looked quickly at her when she heard the door opening.

"Hey, is it an emergency? Because I have a dozen bags to empty."

Hana stood up, mindful of the box.

"I'll help you, give me a minute."

Hana glanced quickly at the box then followed Sombra inside. She left the box on the dinner table, and the two huntresses made quick work of putting the groceries away. The box hadn't move one bit since Hana had left it, which prompted Sombra to believe that there was probably something inanimate, or dead, inside.

"So," Sombra started as she collected all the plastic bags and threw them inside one of the lower cabinets. "What's in the box? Our next mission?"

Hana nodded. She went to fetch the box on the table and looked inside.

"Oh, I think he's thirsty. Can you pour some water into a bowl?"

Sombra frowned but obeyed. Had Hana really find a werewolf pup this time? The box would have been too small for it. She placed the bowl on the counter, and Hana opened the box, placing her hand inside to pick up whatever was inside.

Soon enough, a big frog was dropping delicately into the bowl. Sombra had never seen a frog like this one, with a bright green skin, a few brown dots on its back and when it looked at her, vivid brown, human eyes. Sombra waited before asking anything, just in case with the water the frog would turn into something else. But nothing happened. It just swam around for a few seconds, then emerged, the bowl so deep only its head was poking out of the water.

"Oh, thanks! I never thought I would like water so much!" The frog said.

Sombra nodded and looked at Hana.

"A talking frog? Really?"

Hana seemed surprised.

"Talking? He hasn't said anything to me!"

"I mean, in my defense, I tried." the frog said.

Sombra shrugged.

"Only magical people can hear him, I suppose."

Hana pouted.

"Well, anyway, this is my friend Lucio. We were supposed to meet this afternoon and when he didn't show up I went to look for him."

"You've been turned into a frog?" Sombra asked.

"Yeah! Yesterday. I was minding my own business, working on my music, and suddenly pop! I was turned into a frog!"

Sombra nodded.

"Well, this is going to be fun. I assume you've been cursed, and unfortunately for you, this kind of curse isn't easy to break."

Hana crossed her arms.

"But it is breakable, right?"

"It is. By true love's kiss."

Both Hana and Lucio seemed stunned.

"Seriously, like in the fairy tales?"

"Yep."

"So all we have to do is find his true love?"

"We could, but go and try to ask around "do you want to break this frog's curse by kissing him?". I don't think you'll get a lot of results, conejita. But there is another way we could save him. Find the person who cursed him."

Hana crossed her arms.

"Really? Is it easier to find the spell caster? So what, do we use fairy dust?"

Sombra shook her head.

"It only works to find creatures or their creators. For a spellcaster, we need something much more powerful..."

Sombra thought for a second, then smirked.

"I already have an idea, but we'll need some help on this one."

* * *

Orisa was very happy to see them, mostly because she didn't have a lot of appointment this late in the school year. They had placed Lucio in the box Hana had been carrying him around in, and dropped him carefully on the counselor's desk once they'd introduced the situation to Orisa.

"Oh, Mister Frog, I don't know what you did to be cursed, but I think you are going to be stuck like this for a while."

Lucio's frog face managed to look sadden at the thought.

"So, can you track the spellcaster?" Hana asked.

Orisa nodded.

"I believe I can, but it will take some time. And I'll need some things. There has been a shortage of leprechaun coins. I'll need some if I have to track someone. Also, could you bring me back a Sunday?"

Sombra nodded.

"Can you keep the frog?"

"Of course. He can keep me company."

She looked down to Lucio who still hadn't move on her desk.

"Tell me, Mister Frog, are you a student here?"

"Yes, I am. I study musicology."

Orisa smiled.

"That does sound very interesting."

Sombra glanced at Hana, giving her the signal that they should leave the room and go on with their mission. Hana nodded, leaving her friend talking about music with the counselor.

* * *

"So, how are we going to get leprechaun gold? Don't we need a rainbow or something?"

Sombra shook her head as they climbed back into her car.

"Not when you know where to find some."

They drove out of the parking, and Hana waited until they were on the road to ask:

"So, do you think it's the Witch?"

Sombra smirked.

"You're catching up quickly, conejita. Congrats."

Hana smirked back at her.

"Yeah well, who else could it be, really? The only question is, why Lucio?"

"To get my attention."

Hana chuckled.

"Not everything revolves around you, you know?"

"She knows I've been looking for her ever since the first time we met. She attacked Mei, Angela's friend. She almost attacked all those girls Genji saved, among which were Lena's girlfriend, Angela and you. She attacked Angela again."

"Really, when?"

"The demon curse. I looked more into it after what Gabe told me. A real demon would have instantly taken the control of Angela. But this was a spell, which can be broken by true love's kiss, as it did."

"Didn't you tell me it didn't work?"

"It worked partially. I don't know why. Maybe Angela was too far from her, or she's getting weaker. Wouldn't that makes things easier for us?"

"So you think all of this was to attract your attention?"

Sombra nodded.

"If she's a powerful witch, she probably doesn't want a good hunter looking too closely at her business. Maybe she thought by attacking people around me I'll come looking for her. All she had to do was wait."

"Well, she's obviously done waiting."

"She made a mistake she hadn't made before. Leaving traces. With Mei and Angela the spell dispersed instantly, but since Lucio is still a frog, the spell is still active on him."

Hana smiled.

"Finally the end of the witch hunt!"

Sombra smirked.

"Don't be too happy. Once we're read of her I'll be able to take more missions, meaning less make-out session time."

Hana seemed shocked.

"Don't you dare!"

* * *

Sombra drove them to the old market. She parked across from the entrance, and they made their way through a labyrinth of small stone paved streets. They'd searched for the Witch through every corner of the place multiple times until the both of them knew the layout of it by heart. Hana remembered every small shop of the market, and she was pretty sure there weren't any leprechaun gold seller anywhere. However, Sombra moved forward with purpose, knowing exactly where she was going.

Hana followed her girlfriend inside a shop a bit larger than the others. Its windows were old and dirty, hiding most of what was inside. The sign above the building said "The Iris", and the few large pots placed in front of it made Hana believe that it was a flower shop. She pushed open the old wooden door, ringing the bell to announce their arrival.

The inside of the shop was just as old and dirty as the outside. Flower pots occupied most of the room: Placed on the floor, on shelves, on the counter or suspended in the air. Every type of flower imaginable: Climbing roses which looked more like someone at attached rose petals on thorns. Venus flytraps the size of small bushes, and gardenias the size of Hana's head, of a strange pale color. And ivy everywhere, climbing on the walls and the counter, encircling the windows and leaving barely enough light to pass through.

Sombra came up to the counter while Hana looked around, mindful to not touch anything. If she'd learn anything in the past few months, it was that touching could be very dangerous.

"See anything you like?" Sombra asked with an amused smirked.

"Well, I had never seen green roses, that's for sure..."

"That's because they aren't."

Hana took a quick step back which made Sombra grin even more before she came up to stand next to the counter.

A few seconds later, a man came passing through the curtain of ivy leading to the back of the shop. He was tall and thin, with bright red hair and a goatee. He was wearing a Guinness shirt covered with dirt.

"Good afternoon lassies'! What can I do for you today?"

Hana frowned. The man talked quickly and in a thick Irish accent.

"We're here to buy some gold." Sombra declared bluntly.

The man in front of them paled.

"I'm sorry, but we're a flower shop."

"Yeah, and I'm graduating in theology," Sombra replied instantly. "Let's cut the crap, we don't have the time. How much for two coins?"

The man shook his head.

"I'm sorry, but we're out of stock."

"Oh come on, who do you think I am? You guys always keep a stock. What? Do I have to wait for a rainbow or something?"

The man was about to walk back inside the back of the shop, saying:

"I sold all my stock to a single customer, I can't help you."

Sombra quickly took something out of her pocket and threw it on the glass counter. The sound of glass being hit rang around the shop, making the man stop instantly. He stared longly at what was now resting on his counter. It was a small velvet bag, containing something solid, probably made out of metal or stone. The man walked closer to it carefully and opened it. He almost dropped it when he saw what was inside.

"Where did you find this?"

"An old target. She didn't part with them easily."

"I bet she didn't."

"It's yours, for three coins."

"Two."

"Three, or I take the ring back."

The man seemed torn, grimacing until he looked back down into the small velvet bag.

"Alright three. But don't go telling around where you got them! I could be in a lot of trouble."

"Our lips are sealed."

The man returned to the back of the shop and came back a few moments later with a small leather pouch. Sombra took it, opening it just enough to count the gleam of three coins. She smirked.

"It was a pleasure dealing with you."

"Yeah, yeah. Now get out before you get me into more trouble!"

Sombra and Hana quickly left the shop, Sombra pocketing the pouch in her jacket pocket, and holding on to it with one hand. With the other, she caught Hana's hand. They walked back to the car with their finger entwined. Whether it was a cover or a simple gesture, Hana didn't mind either.

Once inside the car, Sombra checked once again their goods, before throwing the pouch on the dashboard and igniting the car.

"What did you gave him?" Hana asked as they drove away from the parking.

Sombra shrugged.

"Some old vampire jewels."

* * *

They returned to the counselor's office only to find Orisa and Lucio sharing stories over a slice of pizza. Hana didn't know whether pizza was very recommended for a frog, but this he used to be human, it should pass. Sombra instantly decided to cut to the chase. She threw the pouch on the desk, the coins ringing as they landed. This got the attention of the voodoo priestess, who smiled genuinely.

"You got some? Amazing!"

"Can we get to it already? The sun is almost set and I'd like to find that Witch before the moon is up."

Orisa nodded. She took the coins and stood up. She opened the wardrobe to her right and began to prepare something. Though her sight was blocked by the opened door, Hana sneezed at the smell of spices and blood. Lucio seemed contempt with eating his slice of pizza for now.

While they waited, Sombra seemed to be deep in thought, her gaze lost on the desk in front of them. Suddenly, she asked:

"Do you know what gold coins are used for?"

"Well, to my knowledge, a lot of things. I don't know as much as I wish I knew in traditional magic, but locating spells, I am sure of that. I think I heard someone one day telling me that you could use them for long distance spell, to extend the distance you wanted to throw your spell at. I never really understood what was the point of it anyway. Illusion spells too, if I recall."

Sombra nodded, then sent a glance at Hana. The younger girl hadn't quite caught up to what Sombra was trying to prove here, but she undoubtedly knew Sombra would catch her up later.

Soon enough the potion was ready. Orisa took a paper map of the city out of her desk drawer and placed it, half-open, on the table.

"Mister Frog, if you please?"

Lucio jumped to seat in the middle of the map.

"How cold is it going to be?"

Orisa took the small wooden mixing bowl in her hand.

"I don't know, I have never tried it on myself. I just know that it is pretty cold."

Lucio seemed to nod. Orisa emptied the golden liquid on him and he trembled.

"Oh man, it's cold!" Lucio shouted when the potion made contact with his skin.

The liquid, passing over him, seemed to be sucked in by the map as soon as it made contact. Once every drop of the potion had fallen off of Lucio, the paper began to glow, highlighting all of the streets. Lucio jumped off and back to his lunch. They all stared at the map until the glow disappeared, slowly but surely. Only a small series of streets were still highlighted, showing them the way to the spellcaster.

Sombra took the map and opened it until she could see the entire path.

"Goddamn it!" she let out once she'd seen their destination.

Hana looked over her shoulder. She followed the golden path from the campus ground and all the way to the old market.

"She was there this whole time! I was right!"

Sombra quickly closed the map and rushed to the door.

"Let's go!"

Hana looked at her girlfriend, then her frog friend.

"Shouldn't we take Lucio with us?"

Sombra only stopped by the door.

"Well yeah, what are you waiting for?!"

Hana sighed. At least now that they knew where the witch was, Sombra would stop obsessing, she hoped.

* * *

Sombra drove at top speed, Hana barely managing to hold onto Lucio's box. Once parked at the exact same spot as before, Sombra rushed through the streets, following the map and almost losing Hana. Most if not all shops were closed by now, but it didn't matter, as the map led them to a brick wall. When Sombra stopped in front of this old wall, on which an old add was still partially painted, but too erased to read, Hana thought they'd been led to the wrong place.

Sombra pocketed the map and passed quickly her hand over the bricks until she found what she was looking for. There, hidden in the stones, was a small hole, with a sharp piece of glass embedded inside. Sombra glanced back at Hana.

"If anything happens, don't forget to bring my body back with you."

Hana was shocked for a few seconds.

"Don't say that!"

Sombra smirked, and passed her finger over the glass, cutting her finger. She waited a good minute, making sure some of the blood had fallen into the hole, then pulled her hand out. She stared at the wall. She was sure this was the way to open the passage hidden there. Maybe she needed a different type of blood? She looked back, to ask Hana to do it as well when she realized she was alone. Hana was gone without a trace, replaced by white fog which prevented her from seeing farther than her nose.

"Hana?" she called out.

No answer. How had this fog sneaked up on them? She looked back at the wall. It still hadn't budged. She searched her pockets for her phone but found that it was gone as well. She decided to return to the car, hoping she would found Hana there. Thank goodness she knew her way in and out of the old market by heart.

With a hand on the left wall of the street, Sombra began her slow journey back. She felt eyes watching her, but decided to ignore them, and pretend she hadn't noticed. She took a turn, knowing the exit was at end of the street when she suddenly hit a wall. Sombra frowned. Fog and walls? Someone wanted her trap in here. She turned around, and unsheathed her sword and walked back. She stopped dead in her track, in the middle of the street.

"I know you're there. Show yourself!"

There was a laugh, oh so familiar to the Latina, and a dark figure hidden behind the fog, in front of her.

"As you wish."

The fog around them dispersed, just enough for her to see her target. Only, for the first time in forever, Sombra found herself stunned. This was the witch alright, dressed almost stereotypically, with a large pointed hat, a small red cape and a very short dress with a bat on it. Her spellbook was attached to her belt. Only, there was something utterly wrong with how the witch looked. Blond hair partially hidden by her hat. Steely blue eyes watching her with amusement. Sombra could recognize that face anywhere.

"Angela?"

The witch smirked.

"Close enough." she declared. "Does that mean I should call you Olivia?"

Sombra's eyes grew wide, so much so that they threatened to fall out of their orbit. How?

"You were the witch this whole time? It's impossible!"

"Why do you continue to stubbornly assume that I am her?"

"Because you look alike."

"A trick of the light."

"Because you sound like her."

"We all sound like someone else, don't we? Alright, let's assume that I am indeed Angela. What are you going to do about it, Olivia?"

"Don't call me that!"

"But it is your name, isn't it? So tell me, Olivia, what are you going to do about it? Are you going to kill her? You can't kill me, not anymore. What are you going to do, Olivia?"

Sombra felt her knees trembled. She had never been that afraid for a very very long time. She stared angrily at the Witch in front of her, who began to laugh.

"I'll see you soon, I assume. Goodbye, Olivia!"

* * *

Everything disappeared suddenly, and Sombra woke up. She was in the backseat of her car, driving away from the old market. Her head felt like an anvil, being hit repeatedly until she couldn't even move. She stayed on her back, her gaze fixing the ceiling, for a better part of the ride, processing what she'd just discovered.

Hana had been so focused on getting her girlfriend home that she hadn't even notice Sombra was awake until she glanced into the rear-view mirror and saw Sombra's eyes were wide open.

"How are you feeling?" she asked, using a red light to turn around and make sure Sombra looked okay.

"Like I just got shot into space and pulled back to Earth by an elastic band."

"I don't know what happened, but you just fainted, so I thought you were under a sleeping curse, and I wanted to bring you home before we could figure things out."

Sombra's mind seemed to be distant for a moment before she smiled sadly.

"Did you call Jesse?"

"Not yet, why?"

"Call him. I know who is the Witch, and we're going to need his help. Everyone's help, actually."

The light changed to green and Hana began to drive again, though less nervously than before.

"I wasn't under a sleeping curse. It was more of a hallucination, but the Witch could get directly into my brain. It was a trap. And now she knows my name."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! I wanted to thank pandahuff for leaving a comment. Don't worry, this story is going out with a bang or not going at all (question mark wink wink)  
> I'll see you guys tomorrow for part 1 of the finale!


	12. You Know My Name part 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The gang gets ready to take on the Witch after Sombra has confirmed a few theories.

**Chapter 12**

You Know My Name part 1

 

Everyone had met in the living room, waiting for Angela to come home. Fareeha had assured them she had been working in the lab all day, and Sombra believed her. She'd been wracking her brain to find an answer to this mystery and began to doubt even her own sanity. Why would the Witch appear to her looking like Angela? Was it a trick, or the truth? She'd been pacing the floor ever since she came home, to Hana's annoyance. She wanted Sombra to calm down, to sit down, or maybe take a nap. But every single one of her attempt at calming the other girl had turned out very poorly.

The door opened, and Sombra stopped pacing, her eyes on the door. Only, she groaned when she saw Lena passing the threshold at top speed. She stopped in the living room and noticed that everyone was already there, besides Angela.

"So, what's the big deal?" she asked when she sat down next to Fareeha on the couch.

"Nothing that concerns you." Sombra declared, before retreating to her thoughts.

Lena jumped to her feet and glared at the Latina. The device on her chest seemed to glow even brighter.

"Okay, I've had enough! You've been ignoring me ever since the accident! I know I don't do much most of the time, but now I can help, but you've got to let me! I don't care whether I'm a creation, or whatever you want to call it!"

Sombra stopped pacing to stare at her. Fareeha seemed to agree with Lena, arms crossed and watching Sombra, ready to hear her answer. Jesse seemed interested in the situation, while Hana watched their argument sadly.

"If you want to kill me, then go on! But I won't let you kill me easily!"

Sombra seemed still half buried in her thoughts when she replied:

"There are more important things at stakes now. If you want to come along, then do. If you want to prove me something, then do. I don't care anymore."

Lena was stunned to hear Sombra so distant as if she didn't care about anything. She sat back down, and waited, the glow on her chest softening. Sombra stopped pacing, only to stand still, her gaze to the floor, her mind far from the house. Hana was about to stand up to try and talk to her, but Jesse stood up first. He placed a hand on Sombra's shoulder, taking her out of her thoughts.

"Why don't you start by telling us what is going on? A vague 'something happened' ain't gonna cut it, you know?"

Sombra glanced at the door and nodded. Jesse sat back down next to the ghostly shape of his father.

"I confronted the Witch. She used the trap to open her door to place me under some kind of mind curse, to communicate with me. And somehow, she took Angela's appearance."

There was a stunned silence, as if none of them really grasp the situation.

"I don't know what it means really. Is it how she looks like, in that case, what does it mean for Angela? Was it just a trick? The more I think about it the more I know it can't be a coincidence."

Jesse nodded.

"What do you mean?" Fareeha asked.

She glanced at Hana.

"Today I was talking to Hana, telling her how everything that was happening was centered around me, as if the Witch wanted to tell me something. But I was wrong."

Sombra fetched a chair from the dining room and sat in front of everyone.

"The first time the Witch attacked was the Halloween party, remember? She sent two creations to attack us."

Sombra seemed to fidget as she recalled her first exchanged with the Witch.

"She already knew I was a hunter back then, and she implied she had another name she liked above all of those she'd been given. And somehow, she already knew that I'm a..."

Sombra trailed, words failing her.

"The second time was the curse on Mei. Not a lot of things to say. It was broken by a professional witch hunter."

Sombra glanced at Fareeha, expectantly.

"Hum... Zarya said she wasn't coming because she doesn't want to associate with monsters like you..."

Sombra pursed her lips, annoyed. Of course.

"Then we have the shadows following girls around the campus. I went through a bunch of hypothesis on this one, but I'm assuming a dragon would have been able to tell a vampire from a werewolf. It had to be an illusion, like the first time I had met the Witch. Finally, the demon cruse on Angela. I thought it had failed because of distance, but this is a very powerful Witch."

"And Lucio?" Hana asked.

"Lucio. He doesn't fit in my hypothesis, and I still don't know why she would curse him. We'll have to look more into it later."

"Yes please!" Lucio's muffled voice came to their ears. Hana had left his box on the dining table ever since they'd come back, giving him a glass of orange juice to drink from.

"So, why were you wrong?" Fareeha asked.

Jesse seemed to have caught up with his sister's reflection, and explained:

"It wasn't aimed at Sombra. All if those attacks were aimed at Angela."

Sombra nodded.

"More specifically, they involved Angela one way or another. The monster she created at the Halloween party should remind you of someone, Fareeha, because he was coming straight from the story you told Angela, not ten minutes before."

Fareeha's mouth opened as she realized what Sombra was telling them was true.

"Mei is Angela's only friend in the lab, a very close target. Angela was one of the girls Genji kidnapped. And finally, the demon curse."

"But the demon cursed failed," Jesse noted.

Sombra nodded.

"My theory is mostly based on this failed curse. If it had succeeded, the Witch would have taken over Angela's body, and teleported away. Dad, you know quite a lot about curses, don't you?"

Gabe shrugged.

"I know a thing or two, yeah."

"What is the first thing a person under a demon curse does?"

"Changes from person to person. Sometimes they go and buy some ice cream. Sometimes they visit some shady places. Most of the time, they go to find their creators."

Sombra sent a pointed look to the rest of the group.

"If the curse had worked, how much do you want to bet Angela would have been in the hands of the Witch by now, and we would still be here, trying to figure out a way to free her?"

Fareeha shuttered at the thought.

"Thank god it failed then..." Lena said.

"Stop digressing and tell us what the heck is going on!" Jesse declared, exasperated by his sister's logical reasoning.

Sombra crossed her arms.

"Angela isn't the Witch, but the Witch is Angela."

"I'm sorry, what?"

"Code of hunters, rule number 46."

She waited for Jesse to answer, but he just stared at her dumbfounded. She sighed.

"And he's the official one... Rule 46 says that under no circumstances should a person with magical abilities separate themselves from those magical abilities. Should a hunter be caught separating someone from their magical abilities..."

"... he'll be suspended, I get it. So you think Angela used to be a witch, but someone broke those ties. And the Witch is trying to reconnect with Angela?"

"No. She's a by-product of Angela's existence. If they reconnect she'll be absorbed. But killing Angela..."

Sombra wasn't able to continue her thought, as Fareeha began to visibly tense, causing Lena to move a bit farther away from her.

"So we kill the Witch." Fareeha declared through clenched teeth.

"We still need to make sure of something. There's an undeniable link between Angela and the Witch, but I want to make sure of it."

Sombra looked at Jesse.

"When Angela comes back, I want you to tell her your name."

Jesse shook vigorously his head.

"No way! You do it!"

"I can't. She already knows mine."

Lena seemed shocked for a few seconds.

"We all know your name, you know?"

Sombra looked exasperatedly at Lena.

"You really thought Sombra was my real name?"

Lena sank into the couch.

"Well... I mean..."

"We hunters have a real name only known to ourselves," Gabe explained. "If this name is discovered by someone, it can be used against us. It's magical."

"Meaning Sombra can't kill the Witch." Lena understood.

"I could, but she only has to order me not to do it and I would be forced not to."

Sombra looked back at Jesse.

"Do you trust me?"

"Well, the last time you said that we ended up running away from a pack of angry snowmen, but alright. I'll do it."

* * *

Angela got home right before eight. She knew she shouldn't come home so late, because it meant the others had to do her chores, but work had once again taken over her mind. She walked in, quickly taking her jacket off as she declared:

"I'm so sorry! I was so focused I forgot to look at the clock and..."

She stopped when she noticed the living room was crowded, and all eyes were on her.

"Oh, I didn't know tonight was a special night."

Sombra, who hadn't left her chair at all while they waited for Angela to show up, turned around.

"It's not a special night, really. I just wanted to test everyone's magical resistance. Why don't you join in?"

Angela frowned.

"It seems dangerous..."

Fareeha reassured her with a smile.

"It isn't, don't worry. I'm fine, look."

She stood up and walked up to Angela, taking her hands and giving her a kiss. Once Angela was reassured that Fareeha was fine, she shrugged.

"Sure, why not? I'm always interested in experiments."

Sombra smirked and stood up to leave her chair to Angela.

"Come on, seat down, I'll be right back."

The blond did as she was told, and Fareeha sat back on the couch, arms crossed and gaze on the ground. She hated to have to lie to Angela, but she understood what Sombra had implied. What Angela knew, the Witch knew.

Sombra came back with a spell book and an ancient gold necklace, with a large flat ruby as the pendant. She handed it to Angela.

"Here, put this on."

"What is it?" Angela asked as she took the jewel in her hands.

"A thought controlling necklace. I stole it from a vampire. Anyway, put it on, and we'll see how well I can control you."

Angela glanced at the jewel, Fareeha, and Sombra.

"Are you sure it's a good idea?"

Sombra crossed her arms.

"I promise I won't make you do anything stupid."

Fareeha nodded behind Sombra, and Angela reluctantly placed the necklace around her neck. She suddenly felt like her head was heating up, as if her brain was overheating. Sombra looked at the book in hands, and finally asked:

"First, tell us what you think of Fareeha?"

Angela blushed, but answered:

"I think she's brave and strong, and she has a good heart, and I like her very much."

Sombra looked back at the book, while Fareeha blushed and smiled brightly at the girlfriend.

"Did you answer because I asked you to or would you have answered without the necklace?"

Angela thought about it for a minute.

"I don't know. Maybe both?"

Sombra glanced one last time at the book.

"Tell us Fareeha is an idiot."

Angela seemed to focus for a second, her lips pursed and her eyes fixed on nothing. Finally, she declared:

"I won't do it."

At this, the entire room glanced at each other. Jesse frowned.

"Are you sure this necklace it magical?"

"Unlike someone, I know what I'm doing, Joel!"

Jesse seemed even more shocked than the rest of the room. It was Fareeha who exploded into laughter first.

"Joel?"

"Oh yeah, you thought his real name was Jesse? He can't be that cool!"

While the rest of the group teased Jesse for his real name, Sombra turned back to Angela. She frowned. There was something, deep in the blond's eyes, the way she looked at Jesse. Sombra wondered whether the Witch was controlling her, or this was their link, a small flame in the back of Angela's gaze.

"Alright, now I want you to tell me something about your childhood, whatever you want."

Angela once again focused, but this time it was different. Instead of fighting the magic of the necklace off, this time she seemed quite lost. She frowned.

"I can't really remember anything."

At her words, the rest of the room fell silent.

"It was such a long time ago, I don't even remember what I used to play with..."

Fareeha felt almost compelled to hug her girlfriend. She stood up, but before she could do anything Sombra stopped her with a hand on her arm.

"You can take the necklace off, Angela. Fareeha, put it on."

The taller girl pouted.

"Do I have to?"

"Yes. I need to show what it does under normal circumstances."

Angela took the necklace off, and she already seemed to be feeling better. She handed it to her girlfriend, though Fareeha first took the time to place a kiss on the crown of her head. She then put the necklace on, and Sombra closed the book.

"Tell us who's the stupidest member of the group."

"Jesse."

The answer was so spontaneous that Fareeha clapped her hands over her mouth, shocked to have spoken to easily.

"But isn't Jesse the smartest member of the group?"

"Yes, he is!" Fareeha eagerly answered.

"Tell us about the first thing you thought about Lena."

Fareeha managed to fight the necklace's magic, if only for a second, before she burst out:

"Does she ever stop talking?"

Lena laughed, not one bit offended by Fareeha's thought. Sombra nodded and declared:

"You can take it off."

Fareeha did so with a relieved sigh and handed the necklace back to Sombra.

"So, I think we can all agree that Angela has a very high degree of magical resistance, unlike others."

"Which means?" Angela asked.

"We're going to go hunt a witch tonight, and you're coming with us."

* * *

They arrived at the old market in two different cars, only because Sombra and Jesse had so many weapons to carry. When they parked at the entrance, Hanzo, who had been seating on a bench there, stood up. Jesse climbed off the car and came to greet awkwardly the dragon man. Sombra questioned them with a raised eyebrow.

"You said we needed as much reinforcement as possible, so I called Hanzo."

Hanzo nodded and declared:

"Genji apologizes he couldn't come, but he's been going to meditation lessons on Thursday nights and he doesn't want to miss a class."

Sombra sighed.

"Alright, come on!"

They all grouped around a map of the old market placed inside the trunk of Sombra's car, and she began to explain:

"This is where we found the entrance to the Witch's lair. There's a spell protecting it, but I believe Angela should get us through. It's possible that she boobytrapped the whole market, but I doubt it. It would consume too much energy and for the seven of us it's a waste of time."

"So we get in, and then?" Jesse asked.

"We find the Witch, and do whatever we have to."

They all nodded, ready to end it this night, except Angela, who felt a bit lost from having received only half of the information.

"Alright, let's go."

Sombra closed the map, picked up the spell book she'd used in their living room, attaching it to her belt through the large metal ring sticking out from the leather bound cover, and closed her trunk.

Together as a group of seven, they followed the path Sombra and Hana knew all too well by now. The shops were all closed, and only the glow of the moon illuminated them. Lena had taken her flashlight with her, but the light of her chrono-accelerator was so powerful it shamed the yellow light of the flashlight.

Angela had taken her first aid kit with her, as she felt it would come to use before the end of the night. The more they walked forward and the more she frowned and huffed. There was something strange and familiar about this market, and it had nothing to do with the fact that she may have visited it once or twice. Fareeha slowed down just enough to take the blond's hand in hers.

"It's alright. I'll protect you."

Angela smiled.

"I know you will."

At the front of the group, Hana hadn't lost the two girls' exchanged. She moved closer to Sombra and whispered:

"When are we going to tell her?"

Sombra glanced back at the blond.

"If anything goes according to plan, we won't have to."

* * *

The whole group stopped in front of the brick wall, its fading painting only illuminated by Lena's device. Under the blue light, Sombra walked closer to the wall and began to search for the hole again. She thought for sure it was where she'd been searching, but the Witch might have moved it. She searched higher, then lower, and finally found it south-west to where it been a few hours earlier.

"Angela."

The blond let go of Fareeha and moved closer to the Latina, her heart beating frantically. There was a strange feeling in her stomach, one which made her want to cry and faint, though she couldn't understand why.

"Put your hand in the hole. There should be a piece of glass or something. Cut yourself on it, and make sure some of your blood falls inside. It should open the door."

Angela bit her lower lip. She was about to ask if she really had to do it, but with six people waiting on her and that bad premonition haunting her body, she decided to obey. She passed tentatively her hand into the hole, until she felt the piece of glass, like Sombra had predicted. She passed a finger over it, feeling both the smoothness and cold of the glass and its sharpness. She passed her finger over the pointed part multiple times, until she realized that if she didn't put pressure nothing would happen. So she did. She clenched her teeth as glass cut through her skin, and the burning feeling of blood running down her finger made her want to retract her hand instantly. But she waited, just like Sombra had told her. She thought she could almost count how many drops of blood had fallen inside the hole until they heard the grinding of stones, and she quickly removed her hand. She held in under the blue light and stared at the unequal cut still bleeding out with stunned silence. Behind her, the bricks began to move. They turned and rolled away like a parting curtain, until a large and dark entrance was left open.

"Let's go." Sombra declared.

The group moved forward, and Fareeha took Angela with her, not only tearing her away from her daze but also helping her bandage the cut while they walked.

They quickly found a set of stairs in the darkness, and walked down, descending more and more deeply underground. Lena, though very much able to see through the darkness, was almost tempted to turn her flashlight on. From time to time she glanced back, but now that they were deep enough she couldn't see the entrance anymore.

Suddenly she thought she'd heard something, like a whisper in the wind, which seemed to call her. She stopped, but Jesse quickly caught her arm and pulled her with him, forcing her to walk.

"We need to stay together, alright?"

She nodded, still clenching her flashlight as if it were the most dangerous weapon the group owned.

She didn't stay much longer without turning it on, but the beam of light couldn't find anything, other than darkness, and the walls of the hallway.

"Lena, turn it off." Sombra huffed. "It's useless."

"I know..."

Lena obeyed, only leaving the group to wander around with the light of her chrono-accelerator.

Suddenly she heard it again, less a whisper and more or a word, said right to her ear. She shivered and looked back. She almost tripped over her feet, and had to remind herself that she needed to keep moving, else the group would leave her behind. She looked in front of her, and stopped moving altogether.

Gone was the dark hallway and the wind whispering in her ear. She was back to the surface, in the old market. She could only guess it was where she was, because the heaviest fog she'd ever seen was surrounding her. Gone, also, was the rest of the group, and she didn't know whether she'd been left behind, or she'd distanced them. She was alone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> See you tomorrow for the finale ;)


	13. You Know My Name part 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The gang finally gets a chance to take down the Witch.

**Chapter 13**

You Know My Name part 2

 

Lena, panicked, began to spin around, trying to find her way through the fog. She couldn't even see the walls of the buildings on either side of the street, and could only guess that it was daytime because she could see how white and thick the fog was. She turned her flashlight on, but its beam was too weak to cut through the fog, and so was the light of her chronal-accelerator. How had she ended up here, back on the surface in the middle of the day when they'd entered the witch's lair in the evening?

She called out:

"Angela! Fareeha! Sombra! Hey! I'm here guys!"

No answer, only her voice echoing in an empty street.

"Guys!"

Someone passed behind her, though she couldn't turn around quickly enough to see who. She only her faint footsteps, and the way the fog had twirled around them. She readied herself. She may not have a weapon or fighting skills, but she knew with her powers a single hit could pack a punch nonetheless.

"I'm warnin' ya', I'm not going down without a fight!"

She felt someone circling around her, though either too quickly or too covered by the fog for Lena to see them. There was a laugh, familiar yet evil, sending shivers down Lena's spine.

Suddenly, she felt it. Something cold coming against her back, right under her ribs. Even with her power, she could barely react in time. She bolted, her hand catching the hand holding the weapon, and her other hand, on instinct, closed around her attacker's other wrist. Then she looked up, and almost let go of her attacker's hands.

Sombra was standing before her, a dagger in one hand and a smirked glued to her lips.

"I should have done that ages ago!"

In one swift move, Sombra freed herself from Lena and tried to stab her. Lena avoided the attack only thanks to her powers. She then moved back, slowly, her eyes darting to and fro between Sombra's face and the dagger.

"Come on, you don't have to do that, remember? I'm fine and... we're friends..."

"I don't make friendships with monsters!"

"Now that's harsh..."

Sombra tried to stab her again, and Lena saw the glimmer of fury in the Latina's eyes. She decided to make a run for it. She turned around and sprinted away from Sombra, leaving a trail of blue light behind her. She ran as fast as she could through the fog, sure she'd left Sombra behind, but still meaning to put as much distance between the two of them and finding a nice hiding spot until she could find someone less aggressive toward her.

Suddenly she tripped and fell heavily on the paved streets. She barely had time to be stunned by the shock, as the same laugh as earlier echoed oh so close to her. She pushed herself up, but a kick in the ribs only made her roll on her back with a groan. Sombra was once again standing above her, dagger in hand.

"Don't do it, please! I'll do anything... Just... don't kill me!"

Sombra's smirk grew, terrifyingly so, and she kneeled beside Lena, ready to stab her once again, still laughing menacingly.

* * *

How she had ended up alone, in the middle of a foggy street, Hana still didn't know. Somehow she'd lost Sombra though her girlfriend had been standing very close to her. But as soon as she'd realized she was lost, all of her newfound hunting skills had kicked in. She'd taken her dagger in hand, and began to move carefully around the streets, mapping mentally her way, noting which streets she'd taken and which she hadn't until she realized she'd been walking in a big loop for the past few minutes.

She decided to taken random paths then, alternating between left and right, but once again found herself back to where she'd come from, as she recognized the crates left against the closed-off entrance to a bookshop.

She huffed, exasperated. Was this a spell, bounding her to always come back here, or was she in a hallucination, like Sombra earlier? Either one was plausible, after all, or maybe both at the same time. It would be harder to find the Witch if she was stuck in place.

Setting aside her fear of ending up stuck here forever, she began to walk again. She decided if she was stuck in an endless loop, then so was everyone else, and she wouldn't give up until she'd found a way to free them all.

There was a laugh, suddenly, both familiar yet strange, as if she'd heard it a thousand times but never with that evil ring to it. She looked up, and through the fog she could barely make out the shape of Sombra, seating on one of the roofs. Hana felt relief wash over her. At least she wasn't alone in this hell anymore.

"Sombra! I'm so glad you're here! We need to help the others."

Yet Sombra continued to laugh until it made Hana shiver uncomfortably.

"Sombra?"

"You really are as dumb as you look, you know."

Hana was shocked to hear those words coming from Sombra.

"What do you mean?" she asked, stunned.

"'What do you mean?'" Sombra mimicked mockingly. "See what I mean! How could I ever think you would make a good hunter. You're not even a good assistant!"

Hana shook her head, frowning.

"You're not Sombra, aren't you?"

"Oh wow, you're even stupider than I thought! And who would I be, if I'm not Sombra?"

"You're the Witch, and I'm going to kill you if it's the last thing I do!"

Though Hana could barely see Sombra through the fog, she saw something morphing on her face. Her smile became impossibly large, and she stood up, laughing, her eyes shining brightly. Hana was about to climb up to join her, but the fake Sombra ran off. Instantly Hana took off after her, her teeth clenched.

* * *

The instant Sombra saw she was alone she took her dagger in her hand and used her powers, becoming invisible. She knew the Witch could probably sense her, but between the fog and her invisibility, she knew she would be harder to find. She began to run around and quickly realized that she was stuck in a loop, always bringing her back to where she'd begun. She wondered whether the witch had placed them in space boxes, each of them right next to the other yet never able to hear, see, or reach the others.

She would have continued to look for an answer, when she heard the cry of a child, echoing loudly around the street. Though the twist in her guts told her it was a very bad idea to go check, Sombra quickly began to run toward it. She hadn't even noticed she'd willed her invisibility away until she stopped dead in her tracks. She was standing in a dead-end, and through the thick fog, she could discern the shape of a child, crying in a corner, making themselves as small as possible.

She carefully walked closer, her dagger back in its sheath. She raised her hands calmly, and stepped closer carefully. With each step she took the child tried to move away from her, as if they'd wish to melt into the wall. Their sobs turned to strangled heaves.

"It's alright... I'm not gonna hurt you. I'm just here to help..."

"That's what he said too..." the child let out, a girl from her small voice.

"Who?" Sombra asked.

She finally closed enough distance to see the girl, and she froze, her heart stopping in her chest. The girl was small, no older than seven. At least half of her long dark brown hair had been shaved, and a series of mean cut passed around her skull. They had yet to heal, as metal clips had been used here and there to keep the wounds close. She was wearing a bloodied hospital gown, though most of the blood came from the cuts on her arms and legs. There was a dark purple bruise on her cheek, and another one on her neck, where a needle had been inserted so often that it had left a hole. Her fearful brown eyes were red with tears, as she clutched her teddy bear close to her chest, its fur matted with dried blood.

Sombra didn't know whether to hug the little girl or run away from her as quickly as possible. But before she could choose, the little girl, shivering and sobbing, pointed to Sombra.

"He did."

Her heart sank to her gut, and she didn't dare turn around, until a cold hand touched her shoulder. She bolted away from the man, and as she felt her back hit the wall she realized the little girl was gone, leaving only a pool of blood on the floor. She swallowed and looked up. There, standing before her, was a man. No, not a man. A monster. Twice as tall as her, at least, with a long twisting body, clad in medical gear. Over his mouth was a heavy gas-mask, and on his forehead was a light, like that of a lighthouse. Under, she could only imagine his cruel, bloody eyes, always frowning. He moved, snake-like, and place a hand on Sombra's shoulder. She was frozen, and there was nothing she could do but wait as he slivered closer to her, his cruel voice muffled by the mask:

"Come Olivia. It is time to finish what I started..."

* * *

Angela had only felt Fareeha's hand leaving hers, and the sudden coldness of her palm had made her realized that she was alone, in a foggy old market. She frowned. Had all of this only been a dream?

"Angela, you're back!"

She turned around, and with a smile she saw the little girl from her dream, running toward her, arms outstretched. She kneeled and picked the girl up, hugging up. It was indeed the girl she'd accompanied in many of her dreams, with the same blond hair tied in a ponytail, but this time, her blue-gray eyes were shining with happiness to see the older blond. Though Angela had dreamed of this little girls often, it was the first time it seems that the little girl remembered her.

"Do you know where we are?" Angela asked. "I was helping my friends but they all disappeared."

The girl shook her head, her arms snaking around Angela's neck.

"There's only us here, and my parents."

"You found them?" Angela asked, both surprised and relieved.

"Yes. Come on, I'll show you to them!"

Angela let the girl down, who took her hand in hers and began to run, dragging Angela with her.

The fog was still as bad as usual, and Angela wondered how the little girl could find her way through it. But after wandering around for what felt like hours, they arrived in a broader street, and the shape of two people standing still appeared through the fog. While the little girl didn't hesitate to move closer, Angela slowed down. There was something awfully wrong, she knew. The way her heart sank into her chest made her stop walking altogether. The little girl let go of her hand and ran to the two people, disappearing in the fog.

"Come on, Angela! I'll introduce you!"

Angela wanted to say no, to walk away, to run away, but her feet moved forward nonetheless, and soon enough she'd cross through the fog, who disappeared the instant she came face to face with the parents. They were unmoving, like statues, and though she hadn't seen them in a long time, she recognized them instantly. Blond hair, the man's a bit darker. Both with blue eyes, the woman the color of the sea and the man's like the sky. Pale skinned and with delicate features. Angela felt her heart clenched in her chest. She quickly placed a hand on her mouth, ready to vomit. Tears began to sting her eyes. This wasn't a dream, it was a nightmare.

"What kind of a sick joke is this!" she yelled.

The little girl looked at her with confusion, her hands each holding the hand of one of her parents.

"What do you mean? These are my parents. We just moved to the United States because that's where daddy's going to work, but mommy promised we'd find a new magic shop close to home, because we used to visit a great one in Zürich. So I hope the American shops are even better."

Angela felt a cold sensation run along her body, from the nape of her neck to the tip of her toes. Her brain, however, was burning, as if her mind was trying to figure out the truth from the fake. The little girl let go of her father's hand, and extended it to Angela:

"You can come with us if you want to!"

The little girl smiled, and began to smile so much it looked terrifying.

"Come on, why don't you come with us?"

* * *

Fareeha had known all of this was just an illusion the instant Angela's hand disappeared from her own, and she'd been lost in the mist. She frowned, trying to see as far as possible through the fog, and when she realized she couldn't see anything but brick walls, she began to run, all of her senses on high alert. It was very strange. She could still smell Angela, but every time she followed the smell and tried to get closer to the blond she ended up hitting a wall. Even stranger, while she hadn't seen or heard anyone else she could smell them all, and sometimes she found one of them, and followed them, but couldn't see them at all. Sometimes they would pass through a wall and she couldn't follow them, and sometimes they would turn around as if they'd hit a dead-end, but the street continued on for her. She'd tried calling them on, wondering if it would help, but it didn't. After looping around for what felt like hours, and following everyone's smell, twice, she decided it was time to see what happened when a mental space was wrecked.

She took her jacket and shoes off, placing them safely in a corner, and began to transform. She was quite proud of the way she'd mastered the curse over the last few months. Now, it barely hurt when her bones cracked and grew, her ears shifted from the side to the top of her head, her nose and mouth extended into a muzzle and a tail pierced her back. She shook herself, getting used to the feeling of this new skin once again, and once she was sure everything was in place she punched the closest wall. It cracked, and after two more punches, it collapsed. She looked inside for a second. It was empty, save for darkness, but she could smell someone else, even more strongly than before. She'd wish it was Angela, but it was only Hana. It would have to do, she thought.

She walked inside, and suddenly, instead of being inside a dark empty building, she was in the middle of another foggy street, much like the one she'd been running around in. But this time, it was different. She only had to take a few twists and turns to realized it was in another configuration. Still a closed loop, yes, but a new loop.

She followed the smell of Hana, who had been running in circles ever since she'd arrived. It only took her a minute to find the short girl, and run up to her. Hana had been pursuing an impish version of Sombra, jumping from rooftop to rooftop, when she suddenly hit at full force Fareeha's soft chest. She almost fell on her butt, wondering what she'd hit and annoyed she'd lost sight of the Witch, when she realized Fareeha was seating in front of her.

"Fareeha? You were with me all along?"

Fareeha shook her head, and made a sign of the paw, for Hana to follow her. Hana nodded and obeyed, the fake Sombra all but forgotten. Fareeha hummed the air until she was closed to smelling someone else, and she knocked down another wall, making it look effortless. Once the wall was down, she indicated for Hana to pass through. Hana obeyed, and instantly found herself on another foggy street, Fareeha appearing close by a second later.

Hana smiled at her, and hesitated before petting her head.

"Good job. Come on, let's find the others."

* * *

Jesse didn't know whether it was because they were a lot of them, and it coasted a lot of magic to separate them all, or because the Witch didn't really know what to do with them, but he ended up with Hanzo in the middle of the old market on the foggiest day ever.

"Welp, guess Sombra was right." Jesse declared, scratching his head before settling his hat back over his head.

"What should we do now?" Hanzo asked.

"Don't know. How about we walk around, see what we can find."

Hanzo nodded, and the two of them began to walk aimlessly, looking around but not seeing much through the fog.

Suddenly Jesse heard something, much like a whisper in the wind, but there wasn't a bit of wind flowing around them. He stopped and turned around to look behind them.

"You saw something?"

Jesse pursed his lips and turned back to the dragon.

"I thought I heard something, but it was probably nothing."

They continued to walk, and since they quickly realized they were going in circles they decided to ignore which way they were going, and just talk.

"So tell me, when's the moving?" Jesse asked.

"Next week."

"I can come help, I mean, if you need."

Hanzo shrugged.

"It would be nice of you. We don't have much to move anyway, but the more hands the quickest it will be."

Jesse smiled.

"You know, I've been meaning to take base soon. I've been the wandering hunter for a while, but I think I've had enough now. And since there seemed to be a lot of monsters to hunt around here, I might just stay."

Hanzo raised an eyebrow.

"Meaning?"

"Well.. you know..."

But Jesse never got to finish his thought, as another whisper seemed to pass through his ears.

"Joel..."

He shivered.

"Nod twice." the whisper said.

Jesse obeyed, his head moving twice. Hanzo instantly noticed the motion, and began to look around, his sharp dragon senses in action.

"Kill him..." the whispered continued.

Jesse took his gun from his holster. However, instead of aiming for Hanzo, his arm stayed motionless, weapon aimed at the ground.

"Go on, Joel, kill him."

Jesse's eyes found Hanzo's, and the dragon nodded. Jesse smirked.

"Don't know what you heard, but my name's not Joel."

In a swift motion, Jesse rolled to the side and Hanzo extended his arm. His hand, now scaly, closed on something, and as soon as his claws pierced the thing's skin, it became visible again.

The Witch was exactly how Sombra had described her. Angela, but with a hat. Jesse smirked. Blood was oozing from her neck as Hanzo put more and more force in his hand, digging his claws deeper into her skin. She whined painfully and began to choke, as Hanzo crushed her windpipe.

"Not so tough now, are you. Let me guess, you're only a portion of the real deal, am I right? So what happens when you kill a part of the real deal?"

The Witch continued to choke, as tears began to run down her cheeks.

"Let's find out, shall we."

Jesse knocked back the hammer of his revolver, aiming at the Witch's head, and pulled the trigger.

* * *

It was as if Jesse had pulled a lever. The Witch in Hanzo's hand turned to golden dust and flew away, while the fog around them disappeared completely. The building crumbled on themselves, and the pavements on the street melted away. It left them in a bright decrepit room, larger than Jesse had expected. It was mostly empty, save for his friends and the Witch.

They were actually standing quite close to Fareeha, Hana, and Lena who had been tearing down a wall to join them when everything had disappeared. Lena was supporting most of her weight on Hana. She'd been in a fight, apparently, and seeing how many cuts were on her body she'd been close to losing. On the other corner of the room, Sombra was seating in a fetal position, still crying. Jesse instantly noticed her, and he ran up to her. She seemed still lost in her illusion, and when Jesse placed a delicate hand on her shoulder she jumped out of her skin and began to push herself away with her feet, as if she could melt into the wall.

"Sshh... It's okay... It was just a hallucination... You're alright... you're alright..."

Sombra stared longly in Jesse's eyes, as he passed his thumbs on her cheeks, erasing the tears still falling there. She threw herself into his arms, and he held her close as she continued to cry.

"It's alright... You're alright..." he said, passing a soothing hand on her back.

No matter how much it tore Hana's heart to see Sombra so broken, her attention instantly focused back to the Witch when she cleared her throat. She was standing in the middle of the room, and holding Angela with one hand on her shoulder, the other holding a dagger to her neck. There was still blood oozing from the claw shape marks on her neck, as well as from the bullet hole on the side of her head, tainting her blond hair red. A deep cut on her leg made her limp.

"Sorry to intrude on this touching family moment, but I have a family matter of my own to attend to. I would ask you to leave, now, before this gets out of hand."

Jesse glared at the Witch and detached himself from Sombra. He fetched a black beany from his pocket and placed it on Sombra's head. Instantly Gabe's ghost appeared beside them.

"Take care of her, I'll finish this."

Gabe nodded and placed his arms around Sombra.

Jesse stood up to rejoined the group. Lena had been placed in a corner, her hands holding the stab wound which had scratched her side. Everyone was standing in front of the Witch, ready to fight.

"You really all want to die, don't you? Fine, I'll cut her throat later, I suppose, once all of yours have been taken care of!"

The Witch pushes Angela aside, and with a golden spell, she attached her to the wall. Fareeha was the first to attack, running at full speed toward the Witch, all claws out. A concussion spell was enough to send her back and hit a wall. Jesse aimed at the Witch while Hanzo was turning as quickly as he could, a massive two head dragon taking his place in a cloud of smoke. Hana used all that smoke to approach the Witch, her dagger at the ready, but could barely cut her with the tip of the blade before the Witch caught her by the throat. She had to let her go almost instantly, however, as Hanzo's massive tail almost collided with her. She teleported away, appearing behind Jesse who'd been reloading. He rolled away, barely avoiding a spell which turned the concrete where he'd been standing into pebbles. Fareeha, back on her feet, ran and jump up Hanzo's massive body, before attacking the Witch from above. She almost clawed at her but the Witch turned to smoke, and Fareeha's claws passed right through.

For a better part of the fight, it seemed none of them managed to do more than a scratch on the Witch's body. Fareeha was being sent again and again in a wall, while Hanzo was so large he had trouble maneuvering around. He almost bit her off, once, before she teleported again. Angela watched them fight with fear. She knew at one point or another the witch was bound to tire, but when? She pulled on the magical net holding her to the wall. It felt much like a spider web, and with the right tool she could cut it, but she couldn't move her hand to open her bag and find her scissors.

Suddenly there was a flash of blue light, and the witch was pushed all the way against a wall herself. Lena was holding her up there, her arm under the Witch's neck and the other stabbing her belly with a dagger. She'd exchanged her flashlight for the fake Sombra's dagger when Fareeha had saved her earlier, and had been holding onto it ever since.

The witch gagged, blood falling from her lips as she began to laugh.

"My turn..."

Another spell sent Lena flying away from her. She would have hit a wall hadn't Fareeha placed herself between them, cushioning her fall. The Witch took the dagger out of her belly, letting the blood run as if it weren't important. She threw the weapon away.

Angela tried once again to push on the net, desperately trying to get to Lena to make sure she was alright, when someone appeared beside her. She almost jumped out of her skin, until she noticed it was Gabe, who had left Sombra's side, who looked still just as traumatized as before.

"Here. Sombra's got a plan, but it will only work if you play your part."

He handed Angela the witch's dagger, its blade still covered with dark red blood.

Angela took it and nodded, determined. She glanced toward Sombra.

"How is she doing?"

"She's been better, but she's been worst too."

He sighed.

"Four years of therapy reduced to nothing by a witch. I should have her to pay me back!"

* * *

Jesse realized with annoyance that he was out of bullets. He sighed, threw his revolver to the Witch in a weak throw and took his crossbow from his back. The gun hit her on the shoulder and she winced, but ignored it mostly, too focused on forcing Fareeha in the ground. Her paws were sinking more and more under the concrete, cracking it under her weight as more and more pressure was added.

Jesse aimed his first bolt, and noticed the golden glow of the net disappearing behind the Witch, Angela jumping off. He pressed the trigger, but his bolt was broken in half before it could even approach the target. He cursed. He glanced behind, only to find the spot where Sombra had been seating empty. He smirked. He placed another bolt in his crossbow, armed and aimed. For a second he thought the Witch had doubled herself, before he understood what was going on. He aimed at her shoulder, and fired. Not only did the bolt passed through her defenses safely, but it pierced through her shoulder. She yelped in surprise and stared at him as if he'd done a magic trick. She quickly turned around, and found Angela, her hands covered with blood, the dagger in hand. The blond didn't hesitate. She stabbed the Witch once again, the blade twisting in her gut. The Witch cried painfully, as everyone else stopped, surprised by the twist.

In a blink of an eye, Sombra appearing behind the Witch, crouching. She stood up in a swift motion, her blade plained in the back of the monster and cutting through the skin, all the way to her head. The witch barely had time to turn around that Sombra, fury burning in her eyes, stabbed her in the neck with her dagger, the blade passing through from one side to the other.

The blood flowing out of the Witch's many wounds suddenly turned to gold, and she fell to her knees, defeated. Sombra didn't waste time. She undid her belt and took the spell-book off, opening it in a swift motion. The pristine white pages seemed to attract the gold flowing out of the witch. Soon enough the Witch herself turned to golden dust, all of which was vacuum by the book. Sombra only closed it once every single gold particle was gone. With a long relieved sigh, she looked to Angela.

"This is yours, I believe."

Angela nodded, and when Sombra extended tiredly the book to her, she took it. Instantly it began to glow, and so did Angela. A few seconds later it stopped, and everyone looked with caution at Angela.

"What happened?" she asked.

"I believe you just got your powers back," Jesse explained.

Angela didn't really know what it meant, other than she would once again be able to do magic, after so many years ignoring it was even something she was capable of.

Hanzo and Fareeha turned back to normal, while Hana threw herself into Sombra's arms. The Latina was first surprised, but she returned the hug with a smile.

"Are you alright?"

"Don't worry. I'll tell you about it later..."

Hana nodded, but continued to hold Sombra, afraid she might fall apart again. Fareeha did the same with Angela, happy to see her safe and sound. The blond left the safety of her girlfriend's arms quickly, to run to Lena and make sure she was fine. Lena was cut and bruised, bloodied from head to toes, but still smiling nonetheless.

"Oh my god Lena! What happened to you?!"

"It was nothing... Just a fake Sombra who tried to cut me open. Your usual Thursday, you know?"

Instantly Angela opened her bag and began to tend to her wounds.

On the other side of the battlefield, Jesse was clapping a hand on his sister's shoulder.

"Good job out there."

"Oh please, you did all the work." Sombra declared.

"I don't think so. We would still be fighting if you hadn't stepped in."

Sombra shrugged.

"Alright, I did all the work."

Jesse laughed wholeheartedly.

"How about we hold onto the praises for now and go home?"

Hana nodded.

"Good idea! I'm starving!"

While everyone began to make their way out, Sombra stopped by Lena, holding out a hand.

"Thank you. I don't think I could have made it work without you."

Lena smiled and took Sombra's hand.

"I couldn't just watch you guys win without contributing. It's teamwork, you know."

Sombra smiled back and carefully helped Lena to stand up, passing one of her arms around her shoulder to support her.

"And I'm sorry. I shouldn't have been ignoring you, just because of the accident."

Lena smiled.

"It's alright. Fighting that fake you kind of made me realized that the real you would never really try to kill me."

"You were really afraid of that? That I could kill you?"

"Well... kinda... You seem to really hate me, you know."

Sombra sighed.

"It's a long story, and I guess I have a lot to be forgiven for. How about we start with this: You get to chose which pizzas we order when we get home?"

Lena smiled.

"So worth it!"

* * *

An hour and a half later, everyone was seated around the dining table, eating pizza. While Angela had taken the time to dress all of their wounds, they still looked like a bloody and dirty mess. Chairs had been pulled from every room to accommodate everyone, plates had been quickly given but barely used by anyone, five boxes of pizza dispersed in the middle of the table. There was a calm silence, beside the sound of people munching on food, but it was appreciated by everyone.

Angela hadn't been much hungry, with all the news she'd still had to swallow. She'd gone from working on her experiment all day to passing a test of magical resistance, to finding out that the Witch they'd been looking for this whole time had apparently been her, but not her at the same time, and finally to the fact that she was now a witch. It still baffled her just to think about it.

Feeling her phone vibrate in her pocket, she took it out and looked at the alarm. She set it especially for situations like this, when she had too much on her mind to think and she'd forgotten about her daily task.

"I have to feed the mice," she said as she stood up. "I'll be right back."

Sombra quickly took hold of one of the pizza boxes and handed toward Angela:

"Give them the all-veggie."

While everyone laughed, Angela only smiled faintly. Fareeha noticed it and stood up to follow her in the hallway.

"Are you alright?"

Angela smiled and took Fareeha's hand.

"You must have asked me five times since we came home. I promise I'm fine."

"I know, I'm just worried. I know what's it like to discover very suddenly the truth."

She smiled.

"So if you want to talk, I'm here."

"Thank you. Go back to eat, I'll be right there."

Fareeha nodded, giving a peck on Angela's lips before she headed back to the leaving room, where everyone had suddenly begun to talk.

Angela entered her bedroom and closed the door behind her. She walked to her desk, where a large plastic cage had been placed. Ever since the end of her experiments in December, she'd taken the mice home with her, not ready to see them die after she'd put so much effort into saving them. She filled up their shared kit and watched them trot around happily. Lefty limped to his food, and she sighed. She felt nothing but pity for the poor thing. She'd tried everything, and by the looks of it, this semester's batch would also be a failure. She watched him eat with regret.

_Poor little thing._

She agreed. If only she could help him.

_You can, you know. Let me show you._

Angela opened the cage, and very carefully she picked up Lefty. She closed the cage back, and the began to look at the small rodent. It was watching her back with agitation, trying to wriggle out of her grasp. Angela's fist tightened softly around the small animal, and it squealed once, twice. A faint golden light escaped from her palm. Then she reopened the cage and placed him on the wood shards carefully. It tried to walk but failed, not used to have four legs. Angela watched him figure it out with wonder.

_There are so many amazing things you can do with magic. Don't worry, I'll show you everything you need to know._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! Sorry for the late update but today was crazy - the "my train is thirty minutes late while I'm freezing my toes off at the train station" kind of crazy. I wanted to thank you all for reading this story, I hope you enjoyed it!  
> Now I know what your thinking: I wish it wasn't over yet, to which I have only one answer: "Will Lucio ever become human again? Will the Amari curse ever be broken? Will Hana ever become a real hunter? What will happen to Satya the vampire? Will Angela ever control her magic or will it take control of her? All of that and more in the upcoming sequel!" Yes, I have promised a sequel to this story and I intend to deliver before October 2018, like I had promised already over on Fanfiction.net. So keep an eye out, not soon but before next Halloween, there will be a sequel. Plus now that they've added Brigitte to the game and she kind of became an instant favorite, you can bet she'll join the gang!  
> But anyway, once again I hope you've enjoyed, and thank you for reading!


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